WhenToBird

Aythya americana · Anatidae

When Do Redheads Arrive in California?

Adult female Redhead
Photo: sophia_herrmeyer, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Redheads are winter birds in California: they arrive in the second week of October, peak in early January (2.1% of checklists), and most are gone by late June.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 8-14the second week of October
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakJan 1-7early January
Most gone byJun 22-30late June

Best: early January. First arrivals the second week of October; most are gone by late June. Peak: on about 2.1% of California checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 2.1% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.1% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.0% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.8% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.7% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.5% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.4% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.6% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.4% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.1% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.8% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.7% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.8% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.8% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.8% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.7% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.5% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.4% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.3% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.4% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.3% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.3% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.3% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.5% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.9% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.1% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.4% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.6% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.6% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.8% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.8% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.6% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.0% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Yolo CountyBest early July · 760 checklists that week, 67,424 in all11%
  2. Lassen CountyBest early May · 230 checklists that week, 8,378 in all11%
  3. Kings CountyBest late May · 99 checklists that week, 3,688 in all10%
  4. Modoc CountyBest late April · 124 checklists that week, 6,138 in all9.6%
  5. Plumas CountyBest early May · 763 checklists that week, 24,629 in all7.6%
  6. Alpine CountyBest mid October · 59 checklists that week, 6,013 in all6.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Enchanted CoveSan Diego County, best mid December · 29 checklists that week, 632 in all78%
  2. Leisure Lagoon (Point Lowell)San Diego County, best late December · 35 checklists that week, 379 in all74%
  3. Mountain View Tidal MarshSanta Clara County, best late December · 27 checklists that week, 771 in all73%
  4. Harriett M. Wieder Regional ParkOrange County, best late May · 96 checklists that week, 2,271 in all71%
  5. Freshwater LagoonHumboldt County, best mid December · 20 checklists that week, 274 in all70%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Redhead is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (1.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 1.2% of 186053 checklists7 am: 1.1% of 444086 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 535846 checklists9 am: 1.1% of 486061 checklists10 am: 1.1% of 411130 checklists11 am: 1.1% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 1.1% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 1.2% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 1.2% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 1.1% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.8% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January2.1%2.1%2.0%1.8%
February1.7%1.5%1.4%1.6%
March1.4%1.1%1.0%0.9%
April0.8%0.7%0.7%0.7%
May0.8%0.8%0.8%0.8%
June0.7%0.7%0.6%0.6%
July0.5%0.5%0.4%0.4%
August0.4%0.4%0.3%0.3%
September0.4%0.3%0.3%0.3%
October0.5%0.7%0.9%1.1%
November1.4%1.6%1.6%1.8%
December1.8%1.8%1.6%2.0%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives early January, 11 weeks later than California
  • Utah: arrives late September, 2 weeks earlier than California
  • Arizona: arrives late August, 6 weeks earlier than California
  • Oregon: arrives the second week of August, 8 weeks earlier than California

Common questions

When do Redheads arrive in California?
Redheads are winter birds in California: they arrive in the second week of October, peak in early January (2.1% of checklists), and most are gone by late June.
When do Redheads leave California?
Most Redheads have left California by late June, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Redhead in California?
The Redhead is reported most often in early January, on about 2.1% of California checklists.
Where in California are Redheads seen most often?
By county, Yolo County, Lassen County, and Kings County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Redhead (counties with at least 200 checklists).