WhenToBird

Larus delawarensis · Laridae

When Do Ring-billed Gulls Arrive in Vermont?

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

Ring-billed Gulls are in Vermont all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late July, peak in early November (18% of checklists), and fall back by late November. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 3.6% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildJul 22-31late July
PeakNov 1-7early November
Fall back byNov 22-30late November
FewestFeb 8-14the second week of February

Best: early November. Here all year; numbers build from late July and fall back by late November. Peak: on about 18% of Vermont checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 7.2% of 12234 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.6% of 8293 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.9% of 7885 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.2% of 10534 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.1% of 7212 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.6% of 8144 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.4% of 10480 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.5% of 7932 checklistsMar 1-7: 7.5% of 8192 checklistsMar 8-14: 13% of 9383 checklistsMar 15-21: 15% of 10620 checklistsMar 22-31: 16% of 16257 checklistsApr 1-7: 16% of 12568 checklistsApr 8-14: 15% of 14677 checklistsApr 15-21: 12% of 14106 checklistsApr 22-30: 11% of 19617 checklistsMay 1-7: 11% of 18143 checklistsMay 8-14: 9.9% of 19626 checklistsMay 15-21: 11% of 17779 checklistsMay 22-31: 12% of 20310 checklistsJun 1-7: 11% of 11493 checklistsJun 8-14: 10% of 10215 checklistsJun 15-21: 9.4% of 9951 checklistsJun 22-30: 9.8% of 11050 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.6% of 8690 checklistsJul 8-14: 9.2% of 7679 checklistsJul 15-21: 9.8% of 7687 checklistsJul 22-31: 11% of 10712 checklistsAug 1-7: 13% of 7703 checklistsAug 8-14: 14% of 7743 checklistsAug 15-21: 16% of 8314 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 12428 checklistsSep 1-7: 16% of 9526 checklistsSep 8-14: 15% of 8493 checklistsSep 15-21: 16% of 8283 checklistsSep 22-30: 15% of 10352 checklistsOct 1-7: 15% of 8802 checklistsOct 8-14: 16% of 9088 checklistsOct 15-21: 17% of 7739 checklistsOct 22-31: 18% of 10907 checklistsNov 1-7: 19% of 7868 checklistsNov 8-14: 18% of 7223 checklistsNov 15-21: 16% of 7224 checklistsNov 22-30: 12% of 8375 checklistsDec 1-7: 10% of 6580 checklistsDec 8-14: 7.6% of 6800 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.9% of 8334 checklistsDec 22-31: 5.3% of 10579 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 Vermont 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 Vermont

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Grand Isle CountyBest early November · 142 checklists that week, 8,507 in all60%
  2. Franklin CountyBest mid August · 526 checklists that week, 25,284 in all41%
  3. Chittenden CountyBest late October · 2307 checklists that week, 109,477 in all40%
  4. Orleans CountyBest late October · 270 checklists that week, 11,785 in all32%
  5. Addison CountyBest mid March · 1957 checklists that week, 77,064 in all26%
  6. Rutland CountyBest early November · 823 checklists that week, 46,909 in all11%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. St. Albans Town BeachFranklin County, best late July · 29 checklists that week, 539 in all100%
  2. Holmes CreekChittenden County, best the second week of October · 53 checklists that week, 2,478 in all99%
  3. Goose BayFranklin County, best early October · 25 checklists that week, 213 in all98%
  4. Crystal BeachRutland County, best late October · 25 checklists that week, 291 in all98%
  5. City BayGrand Isle County, best mid September · 23 checklists that week, 183 in all96%
  6. La Platte RiverChittenden County, best mid September · 73 checklists that week, 4,615 in all95%

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

Best time of day

In Vermont, the Ring-billed Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 2 and 4 pm (15% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (384) to judge1 am: too few checklists (418) to judge2 am: too few checklists (568) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1183) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3460) to judge5 am: 11% of 10340 checklists6 am: 11% of 30951 checklists7 am: 9.2% of 64150 checklists8 am: 8.7% of 70252 checklists9 am: 11% of 55280 checklists10 am: 12% of 47111 checklists11 am: 13% of 37615 checklists12 pm: 14% of 32195 checklists1 pm: 14% of 30185 checklists2 pm: 15% of 29679 checklists3 pm: 15% of 26483 checklists4 pm: 14% of 20110 checklists5 pm: 14% of 15993 checklists6 pm: 11% of 12110 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (8203) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4425) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1829) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (597) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (309) 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
January7.2%5.6%4.9%4.2%
February4.1%3.6%3.4%6.5%
March7.5%13%15%16%
April16%15%12%11%
May11%9.9%11%12%
June11%10%9.4%9.8%
July8.6%9.2%9.8%11%
August13%14%16%15%
September16%15%16%15%
October15%16%17%18%
November19%18%16%12%
December10%7.6%5.9%5.3%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Ring-billed Gulls arrive in Vermont?
Ring-billed Gulls are in Vermont all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late July, peak in early November (18% of checklists), and fall back by late November. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 3.6% of checklists.
When do Ring-billed Gulls leave Vermont?
Ring-billed Gulls never fully leave Vermont: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late November, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.6% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Ring-billed Gull in Vermont?
The Ring-billed Gull is reported most often in early November, on about 18% of Vermont checklists.
Where in Vermont are Ring-billed Gulls seen most often?
By county, Grand Isle County, Franklin County, and Chittenden County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ring-billed Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).