WhenToBird

Larus delawarensis · Laridae

When Do Ring-billed Gulls Arrive in Washington?

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

Ring-billed Gulls are in Washington all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from the second week of August, peak in late September (13% of checklists), and fall back by early December. In the quietest week (the second week of June) they are still on about 3.2% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 8-14the second week of August
PeakSep 22-30late September
Fall back byDec 1-7early December
FewestJun 8-14the second week of June

Best: late September. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of August and fall back by early December. Peak: on about 13% of Washington checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  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%Jan 1-7: 7.1% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 6.6% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 6.6% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 6.4% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 6.3% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.5% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 4.8% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.7% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.3% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.1% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.3% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.8% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.7% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.7% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.8% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.7% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.6% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.7% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.3% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.5% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.3% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.2% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.1% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 3.5% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.3% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.4% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.9% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.9% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.0% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.3% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 10% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 13% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 12% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 13% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 13% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 12% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 11% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.9% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.6% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 8.2% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 7.2% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.0% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.1% 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.

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Where in Washington

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Grant CountyBest late August · 620 checklists that week, 19,963 in all50%
  2. Franklin CountyBest late October · 127 checklists that week, 7,970 in all46%
  3. Benton CountyBest late October · 459 checklists that week, 23,565 in all45%
  4. Asotin CountyBest the second week of December · 80 checklists that week, 4,316 in all41%
  5. Walla Walla CountyBest mid September · 659 checklists that week, 35,829 in all30%
  6. Mason CountyBest early November · 448 checklists that week, 27,853 in all29%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clover IslandBenton County, best late September · 29 checklists that week, 705 in all100%
  2. Lake WallulaBenton County, best early December · 21 checklists that week, 681 in all99%
  3. Walla Walla Point ParkChelan County, best mid September · 78 checklists that week, 2,889 in all98%
  4. Mcnary National Wildlife Refuge (Hunt)Walla Walla County, best late September · 23 checklists that week, 1,089 in all97%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Ring-billed Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (7.6% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%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: 6.5% of 56744 checklists7 am: 6.6% of 133294 checklists8 am: 6.7% of 184196 checklists9 am: 7.2% of 186303 checklists10 am: 7.3% of 177063 checklists11 am: 7.3% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 7.3% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 7.6% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 7.5% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 7.0% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 5.9% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 5.5% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 4.1% 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
January7.1%6.6%6.6%6.4%
February6.3%5.5%4.8%5.7%
March5.3%5.1%4.3%3.8%
April3.7%3.7%3.8%3.7%
May3.6%3.7%3.3%3.5%
June3.3%3.2%3.1%3.5%
July4.3%5.4%5.9%6.9%
August8.0%9.3%10%11%
September11%12%13%13%
October13%12%13%13%
November12%11%9.9%9.6%
December8.2%7.2%6.0%7.1%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives early July, 5 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks early November
  • Montana: arrives late February, 22 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Nevada: arrives early July, 5 weeks earlier than Washington

Common questions

When do Ring-billed Gulls arrive in Washington?
Ring-billed Gulls are in Washington all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from the second week of August, peak in late September (13% of checklists), and fall back by early December. In the quietest week (the second week of June) they are still on about 3.2% of checklists.
When do Ring-billed Gulls leave Washington?
Ring-billed Gulls never fully leave Washington: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early December, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.2% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Ring-billed Gull in Washington?
The Ring-billed Gull is reported most often in late September, on about 13% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Ring-billed Gulls seen most often?
By county, Grant County, Franklin County, and Benton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ring-billed Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).