WhenToBird

Phasianus colchicus · Phasianidae

When Do Ring-necked Pheasants Arrive in Maine?

Adult male Ring-necked Pheasant
Photo: John Krampl, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ring-necked Pheasants mostly pass through Maine: they arrive in late April, peak in mid September (2.0% of checklists), and most are gone by early December.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 22-30late April
Common byApr 22-30late April
PeakSep 15-21mid September
Most gone byDec 1-7early December

Best: mid September. First arrivals late April; most are gone by early December. Peak: on about 2.0% of Maine checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprrare
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.2% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.6% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.5% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.2% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.2% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.2% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.8% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.8% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.1% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.3% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.2% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.3% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.2% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lincoln CountyBest mid September · 1659 checklists that week, 59,429 in all16%
  2. Knox CountyBest mid October · 432 checklists that week, 34,453 in all1.2%
  3. Oxford CountyBest the second week of November · 106 checklists that week, 15,115 in all1.0%
  4. Cumberland CountyBest late October · 3287 checklists that week, 169,501 in all0.5%
  5. Aroostook CountyBest early December · 90 checklists that week, 16,817 in all0.5%
  6. Sagadahoc CountyBest the second week of April · 432 checklists that week, 21,736 in all0.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Monhegan IslandLincoln County, best late April · 21 checklists that week, 4,434 in all89%
  2. Metinic IslandKnox County, best mid May · 40 checklists that week, 263 in all19%
  3. Green Point Wildlife Management AreaLincoln County, best mid September · 25 checklists that week, 1,082 in all16%
  4. Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management AreaYork County, best early April · 23 checklists that week, 2,041 in all4.2%
  5. Crystal Spring Farm South (Linnhaven West)Cumberland County, best early June · 59 checklists that week, 228 in all2.6%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Ring-necked Pheasant is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (1.0% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 1.1% of 19895 checklists6 am: 1.0% of 54578 checklists7 am: 0.4% of 92775 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 86962 checklists9 am: 0.4% of 78989 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 70954 checklists11 am: 0.3% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 0.4% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 0.3% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 0.3% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
May0.1%0.2%1.6%1.5%
June0.3%0.2%0.1%0.1%
July0.2%0.1%0.2%0.2%
August0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.3%1.2%1.8%2.8%
October1.1%0.6%0.3%0.3%
November0.2%0.3%0.1%0.2%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Rhode Island: arrives early August, 13 weeks later than Maine
  • Pennsylvania: arrives early October, 21 weeks later than Maine
  • Michigan: arrives early March, 7 weeks earlier than Maine
  • Indiana: arrives late February, 8 weeks earlier than Maine

Common questions

When do Ring-necked Pheasants arrive in Maine?
Ring-necked Pheasants mostly pass through Maine: they arrive in late April, peak in mid September (2.0% of checklists), and most are gone by early December.
When do Ring-necked Pheasants leave Maine?
Most Ring-necked Pheasants have left Maine by early December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Ring-necked Pheasant in Maine?
The Ring-necked Pheasant is reported most often in mid September, on about 2.0% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Ring-necked Pheasants seen most often?
By county, Lincoln County, Knox County, and Oxford County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ring-necked Pheasant (counties with at least 200 checklists).