WhenToBird

Agelaius phoeniceus · Icteridae

When Do Red-winged Blackbirds Arrive in Washington?

Adult male Red-winged Blackbird
Photo: infiniteuniverse, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Red-winged Blackbirds are in Washington all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid February, peak in early May (37% of checklists), and fall back by late June. In the quietest week (mid August) they are still on about 10% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildFeb 15-21mid February
PeakMay 1-7early May
Fall back byJun 22-30late June
FewestAug 15-21mid August

Best: early May. Here all year; numbers build from mid February and fall back by late June. Peak: on about 37% of Washington checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

Darker months: more checklists report it. Outlined: peak month.

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 14% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 17% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 19% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 21% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 22% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 22% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 23% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 27% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 29% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 32% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 33% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 35% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 35% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 36% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 36% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 37% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 37% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 36% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 35% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 35% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 32% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 30% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 28% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 25% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 23% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 20% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 16% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 13% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 10% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 9.5% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 10% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 17% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 17% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 17% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 17% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 13% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 12% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 12% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 11% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 12% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 12% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 13% of 42130 checklistsJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Share of complete checklists reporting it, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted.

Frequency is the share of complete checklists in Washington that listed the bird, 2016–2025. It is not a head count, and it follows where and when people go birding. How to read it.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
today
Second week of November

Each county is shaded by the share of complete checklists there that listed the bird, blended with the weeks either side. Darker is more often. It follows where people watch birds, not how many birds there are. How to read it.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Washington

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Adams CountyBest late April · 172 checklists that week, 4,574 in all69%
  2. Walla Walla CountyBest early May · 867 checklists that week, 35,829 in all64%
  3. Lincoln CountyBest the second week of May · 278 checklists that week, 6,135 in all61%
  4. Grant CountyBest the second week of May · 1143 checklists that week, 19,963 in all58%
  5. Whitman CountyBest mid May · 503 checklists that week, 18,652 in all56%
  6. Cowlitz CountyBest mid April · 336 checklists that week, 15,273 in all55%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Miller CreekKing County, best late June · 21 checklists that week, 836 in all100%
  2. Echo Lake ParkKing County, best late March · 24 checklists that week, 676 in all100%
  3. Thomas LakeSnohomish County, best mid April · 20 checklists that week, 683 in all100%
  4. Sportsmans LakeSan Juan County, best the second week of April · 25 checklists that week, 609 in all100%

Busy spots report more of everything; compare the checklist counts before you drive anywhere.

Best time of day

In Washington, the Red-winged Blackbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (28% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (796) to judge1 am: too few checklists (776) to judge2 am: too few checklists (709) to judge3 am: too few checklists (901) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3221) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16576) to judge6 am: 30% of 56744 checklists7 am: 27% of 133294 checklists8 am: 26% of 184196 checklists9 am: 25% of 186303 checklists10 am: 22% of 177063 checklists11 am: 20% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 18% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 19% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 20% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 21% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 23% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 24% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 23% of 39886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (26969) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (12427) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (3658) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1500) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (834) to judge12a3a6a9a12p3p6p9p
Share of checklists started in each local hour that reported it. It reflects when people go birding as well as when birds are active. Grey hours have too few checklists (under 2% of the state’s, or under 200) to judge.
Week-by-week table
MonthDays 1-78-1415-2122-end
January14%17%19%21%
February22%22%23%27%
March29%32%33%35%
April35%36%36%37%
May37%36%35%35%
June32%30%28%25%
July23%20%16%13%
August11%10%9.5%10%
September11%12%14%17%
October17%17%17%16%
November14%13%12%12%
December11%12%12%13%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives mid February, in the same week than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives mid February, in the same week than Washington
  • Montana: arrives mid March, 4 weeks later than Washington
  • Nevada: year-round, peaks mid April

Common questions

When do Red-winged Blackbirds arrive in Washington?
Red-winged Blackbirds are in Washington all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid February, peak in early May (37% of checklists), and fall back by late June. In the quietest week (mid August) they are still on about 10% of checklists.
When do Red-winged Blackbirds leave Washington?
Red-winged Blackbirds never fully leave Washington: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late June, but some are still reported in every week, about 10% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Red-winged Blackbird in Washington?
The Red-winged Blackbird is reported most often in early May, on about 37% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Red-winged Blackbirds seen most often?
By county, Adams County, Walla Walla County, and Lincoln County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-winged Blackbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).