WhenToBird

Larus delawarensis · Laridae

When Do Ring-billed Gulls Arrive in Michigan?

Adult Ring-billed Gull
Photo: Isaac Krone, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ring-billed Gulls are in Michigan all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from the second week of July, peak in the second week of November (26% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of December. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 6.8% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildJul 8-14the second week of July
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Fall back byDec 8-14the second week of December
FewestFeb 8-14the second week of February

Best: the second week of November. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of July and fall back by the second week of December. Peak: on about 26% of Michigan checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 16% of 38160 checklistsJan 8-14: 12% of 24696 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.8% of 23771 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.3% of 31347 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.5% of 23225 checklistsFeb 8-14: 6.7% of 27398 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.4% of 36606 checklistsFeb 22-28: 13% of 27127 checklistsMar 1-7: 18% of 29700 checklistsMar 8-14: 22% of 31587 checklistsMar 15-21: 23% of 32118 checklistsMar 22-31: 25% of 47777 checklistsApr 1-7: 23% of 38557 checklistsApr 8-14: 22% of 42207 checklistsApr 15-21: 20% of 42759 checklistsApr 22-30: 17% of 64458 checklistsMay 1-7: 14% of 60998 checklistsMay 8-14: 13% of 72091 checklistsMay 15-21: 16% of 59058 checklistsMay 22-31: 16% of 64724 checklistsJun 1-7: 15% of 35990 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 32595 checklistsJun 15-21: 15% of 30017 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 33988 checklistsJul 1-7: 16% of 28708 checklistsJul 8-14: 17% of 25175 checklistsJul 15-21: 20% of 24084 checklistsJul 22-31: 22% of 33522 checklistsAug 1-7: 24% of 25098 checklistsAug 8-14: 25% of 24353 checklistsAug 15-21: 24% of 25059 checklistsAug 22-31: 24% of 37489 checklistsSep 1-7: 23% of 28410 checklistsSep 8-14: 23% of 27887 checklistsSep 15-21: 23% of 26614 checklistsSep 22-30: 22% of 32557 checklistsOct 1-7: 23% of 25844 checklistsOct 8-14: 25% of 27741 checklistsOct 15-21: 26% of 24693 checklistsOct 22-31: 26% of 32460 checklistsNov 1-7: 27% of 23660 checklistsNov 8-14: 27% of 21542 checklistsNov 15-21: 26% of 19922 checklistsNov 22-30: 25% of 25069 checklistsDec 1-7: 22% of 18272 checklistsDec 8-14: 20% of 18961 checklistsDec 15-21: 16% of 24171 checklistsDec 22-31: 15% of 30908 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 Michigan 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.

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Where in Michigan

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bay CountyBest mid June · 402 checklists that week, 16,522 in all73%
  2. Branch CountyBest the second week of August · 23 checklists that week, 2,279 in all67%
  3. Mackinac CountyBest the second week of September · 228 checklists that week, 7,988 in all66%
  4. Alpena CountyBest early April · 63 checklists that week, 3,793 in all61%
  5. Monroe CountyBest mid March · 414 checklists that week, 22,078 in all60%
  6. Huron CountyBest early November · 86 checklists that week, 4,733 in all60%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. First Street BeachManistee County, best the second week of September · 20 checklists that week, 737 in all100%
  2. GibraltarWayne County, best early January · 23 checklists that week, 135 in all100%
  3. Grand Haven State ParkOttawa County, best the second week of September · 26 checklists that week, 460 in all100%
  4. Lighthouse ParkSt. Clair County, best early September · 38 checklists that week, 1,206 in all100%
  5. Pere Maquette ParkMuskegon County, best late October · 20 checklists that week, 822 in all100%
  6. Grand RiverOttawa County, best late July · 54 checklists that week, 1,355 in all99%

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

Best time of day

In Michigan, the Ring-billed Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (20% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (712) to judge1 am: too few checklists (592) to judge2 am: too few checklists (532) to judge3 am: too few checklists (516) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1592) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6849) to judge6 am: 20% of 39298 checklists7 am: 19% of 120344 checklists8 am: 18% of 180109 checklists9 am: 18% of 171966 checklists10 am: 19% of 156332 checklists11 am: 19% of 134964 checklists12 pm: 19% of 120967 checklists1 pm: 20% of 113852 checklists2 pm: 20% of 110773 checklists3 pm: 19% of 105530 checklists4 pm: 19% of 100958 checklists5 pm: 18% of 80085 checklists6 pm: 18% of 62883 checklists7 pm: 15% of 44912 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (21062) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5920) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1629) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (775) 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
January16%12%8.8%7.3%
February7.5%6.7%6.4%13%
March18%22%23%25%
April23%22%20%17%
May14%13%16%16%
June15%14%15%15%
July16%17%20%22%
August24%25%24%24%
September23%23%23%22%
October23%25%26%26%
November27%27%26%25%
December22%20%16%15%

Neighboring states

  • Ohio: arrives mid October, 13 weeks later than Michigan
  • Indiana: arrives early October, 11 weeks later than Michigan
  • Illinois: year-round, peaks the second week of March
  • Wisconsin: arrives late July, 2 weeks later than Michigan

Common questions

When do Ring-billed Gulls arrive in Michigan?
Ring-billed Gulls are in Michigan all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from the second week of July, peak in the second week of November (26% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of December. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 6.8% of checklists.
When do Ring-billed Gulls leave Michigan?
Ring-billed Gulls never fully leave Michigan: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of December, but some are still reported in every week, about 6.8% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Ring-billed Gull in Michigan?
The Ring-billed Gull is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 26% of Michigan checklists.
Where in Michigan are Ring-billed Gulls seen most often?
By county, Bay County, Branch County, and Mackinac County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ring-billed Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).