WhenToBird

Larus delawarensis · Laridae

When Do Ring-billed Gulls Arrive in New Jersey?

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

Ring-billed Gulls are in New Jersey all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid October, peak in mid January (30% of checklists), and fall back by late March. In the quietest week (the second week of June) they are still on about 3.8% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 15-21mid October
PeakJan 15-21mid January
Fall back byMar 22-31late March
FewestJun 8-14the second week of June

Best: mid January. Here all year; numbers build from mid October and fall back by late March. Peak: on about 30% of New Jersey checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 29% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 30% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 30% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 29% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 28% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 24% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 23% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 28% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 27% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 25% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 21% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 19% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 16% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 13% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 10% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 8.6% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 6.8% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 6.1% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.4% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.3% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.8% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.7% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.8% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.4% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.0% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 9.0% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 14% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 15% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 16% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 16% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 14% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 16% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 17% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 20% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 22% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 25% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 27% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 27% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 28% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 27% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 27% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 28% of 26651 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hudson CountyBest early January · 456 checklists that week, 21,191 in all65%
  2. Bergen CountyBest late December · 1596 checklists that week, 73,457 in all42%
  3. Monmouth CountyBest mid January · 1973 checklists that week, 79,748 in all41%
  4. Middlesex CountyBest late January · 1248 checklists that week, 46,761 in all38%
  5. Ocean CountyBest late January · 2877 checklists that week, 87,340 in all38%
  6. Hunterdon CountyBest late November · 1257 checklists that week, 57,610 in all35%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Musconetcong State ParkMorris County, best late November · 36 checklists that week, 688 in all100%
  2. Fishing CreekCape May County, best early February · 35 checklists that week, 999 in all99%
  3. Hackensack Meadowlands Preserve Area Parcel 2 - River Barge ParkBergen County, best late December · 30 checklists that week, 889 in all98%
  4. Westville Borough ParkGloucester County, best early December · 23 checklists that week, 1,265 in all98%
  5. Lake CarasaljoOcean County, best mid December · 24 checklists that week, 1,087 in all98%
  6. Lake ParsippanyMorris County, best the second week of December · 20 checklists that week, 994 in all97%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, 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 (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 16% of 50447 checklists7 am: 16% of 118312 checklists8 am: 16% of 123273 checklists9 am: 18% of 107783 checklists10 am: 18% of 97537 checklists11 am: 19% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 20% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 20% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 20% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 18% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 14% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 11% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 8.0% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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
January29%30%30%29%
February28%24%23%28%
March27%25%21%19%
April16%13%10%8.6%
May6.8%6.1%5.4%5.3%
June3.8%3.7%3.8%4.4%
July6.0%9.0%11%14%
August15%16%16%14%
September13%12%13%13%
October14%16%17%20%
November22%25%27%27%
December28%27%27%28%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives late October, 1 week later than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: year-round, peaks the second week of January
  • Pennsylvania: arrives early July, 14 weeks earlier than New Jersey
  • New York: year-round, peaks mid November

Common questions

When do Ring-billed Gulls arrive in New Jersey?
Ring-billed Gulls are in New Jersey all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid October, peak in mid January (30% of checklists), and fall back by late March. In the quietest week (the second week of June) they are still on about 3.8% of checklists.
When do Ring-billed Gulls leave New Jersey?
Ring-billed Gulls never fully leave New Jersey: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late March, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.8% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Ring-billed Gull in New Jersey?
The Ring-billed Gull is reported most often in mid January, on about 30% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Ring-billed Gulls seen most often?
By county, Hudson County, Bergen County, and Monmouth County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ring-billed Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).