WhenToBird

Aythya collaris · Anatidae

When Do Ring-necked Ducks Arrive in Washington?

Adult male Ring-necked Duck
Photo: Marcel_Pepin, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ring-necked Ducks are winter birds in Washington: the first arrive in the second week of September, they are common by mid October, peak in mid March (14% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 8-14the second week of September
Common byOct 15-21mid October
PeakMar 15-21mid March
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: mid March. First arrivals the second week of September; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 14% of Washington checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 12% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 12% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 12% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 12% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 12% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 11% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 10% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 13% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 14% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 14% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 14% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 13% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 12% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 8.7% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.7% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.6% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.5% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.8% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.5% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.3% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.1% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.9% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.7% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.5% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.5% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.6% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.7% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.9% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.4% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.1% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.7% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.8% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.6% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.4% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.2% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.9% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 9.4% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 10% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 11% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 11% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 11% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 10% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 11% 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. Garfield CountyBest late December · 13 checklists that week, 1,130 in all59%
  2. Skamania CountyBest the second week of February · 120 checklists that week, 10,140 in all42%
  3. Clark CountyBest the second week of March · 1067 checklists that week, 53,250 in all34%
  4. Wahkiakum CountyBest late February · 103 checklists that week, 5,618 in all32%
  5. Pend Oreille CountyBest the second week of April · 44 checklists that week, 3,664 in all32%
  6. Lewis CountyBest early March · 232 checklists that week, 12,910 in all28%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Frenchmans PondKing County, best mid February · 23 checklists that week, 317 in all100%
  2. Marysville Sewage LagoonSnohomish County, best early December · 37 checklists that week, 1,523 in all97%
  3. Quigley LakeClark County, best late March · 181 checklists that week, 6,702 in all97%
  4. Wandermere LakeSpokane County, best early January · 34 checklists that week, 544 in all97%
  5. Capitol PointThurston County, best late November · 30 checklists that week, 1,484 in all95%
  6. Rex Aldrich ReservoirClallam County, best late March · 20 checklists that week, 566 in all95%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Ring-necked Duck is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (8.3% of those checklists).

0%5%10%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: 3.8% of 56744 checklists7 am: 5.4% of 133294 checklists8 am: 6.8% of 184196 checklists9 am: 7.4% of 186303 checklists10 am: 7.6% of 177063 checklists11 am: 7.7% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 7.7% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 8.1% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 8.4% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 8.0% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 6.4% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 4.8% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 3.5% 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
January12%12%12%12%
February12%11%10%13%
March13%14%14%14%
April13%12%11%8.7%
May5.7%3.6%2.5%1.8%
June1.5%1.3%1.1%0.9%
July0.7%0.5%0.4%0.4%
August0.4%0.5%0.6%0.7%
September0.9%1.4%2.1%2.7%
October3.8%4.6%6.4%8.2%
November8.9%9.4%10%11%
December11%11%10%11%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives mid August, 3 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of August, 4 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Montana: arrives mid August, 3 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Nevada: arrives mid July, 7 weeks earlier than Washington

Common questions

When do Ring-necked Ducks arrive in Washington?
Ring-necked Ducks are winter birds in Washington: the first arrive in the second week of September, they are common by mid October, peak in mid March (14% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Ring-necked Ducks leave Washington?
Most Ring-necked Ducks have left Washington by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid June.
When is the best time to see a Ring-necked Duck in Washington?
The Ring-necked Duck is reported most often in mid March, on about 14% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Ring-necked Ducks seen most often?
By county, Garfield County, Skamania County, and Clark County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ring-necked Duck (counties with at least 200 checklists).