WhenToBird

Columba livia · Columbidae

When Do Rock Pigeons Arrive in Connecticut?

Adult Rock Pigeon
Photo: Paul Braun, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

The Rock Pigeon is in Connecticut all year. It turns up on about 9.7% of checklists at its peak (late October) and on 4.7% in its quietest week (the second week of May).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekOct 22-31late October
Quietest weekMay 8-14the second week of May

Best: late October. Here all year. Peak: on about 9.7% of Connecticut checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 8.8% of 18950 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.9% of 13676 checklistsJan 15-21: 7.8% of 13377 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.0% of 17004 checklistsFeb 1-7: 8.5% of 10218 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.7% of 11568 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.2% of 15916 checklistsFeb 22-28: 8.0% of 11413 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.1% of 10754 checklistsMar 8-14: 6.9% of 12051 checklistsMar 15-21: 7.5% of 12616 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.7% of 17801 checklistsApr 1-7: 6.8% of 13186 checklistsApr 8-14: 6.6% of 14428 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.0% of 14738 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.1% of 21753 checklistsMay 1-7: 4.5% of 22494 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.7% of 23363 checklistsMay 15-21: 4.9% of 20219 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.1% of 20778 checklistsJun 1-7: 5.6% of 12234 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.8% of 12491 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.4% of 10856 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.4% of 11964 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.8% of 9437 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.8% of 8599 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.5% of 8252 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.9% of 11329 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.2% of 8116 checklistsAug 8-14: 8.3% of 8051 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.9% of 8502 checklistsAug 22-31: 8.8% of 13673 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.4% of 9873 checklistsSep 8-14: 8.7% of 9735 checklistsSep 15-21: 9.0% of 10120 checklistsSep 22-30: 9.1% of 12543 checklistsOct 1-7: 8.4% of 10735 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.5% of 10869 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.5% of 10436 checklistsOct 22-31: 9.7% of 13808 checklistsNov 1-7: 9.8% of 10507 checklistsNov 8-14: 8.7% of 9827 checklistsNov 15-21: 8.7% of 9904 checklistsNov 22-30: 8.6% of 13396 checklistsDec 1-7: 9.0% of 8974 checklistsDec 8-14: 8.9% of 9468 checklistsDec 15-21: 9.6% of 11614 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.6% of 16616 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 Connecticut 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 Connecticut

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. New Haven CountyBest mid October · 2657 checklists that week, 139,721 in all16%
  2. Fairfield CountyBest early March · 2757 checklists that week, 139,848 in all13%
  3. Tolland CountyBest mid October · 763 checklists that week, 39,004 in all10%
  4. Hartford CountyBest late October · 2270 checklists that week, 105,735 in all9.5%
  5. New London CountyBest mid September · 1000 checklists that week, 65,205 in all8.9%
  6. Windham CountyBest the second week of December · 237 checklists that week, 19,034 in all6.7%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hatchaloosie ReservoirLitchfield County, best late August · 27 checklists that week, 200 in all90%
  2. West SimsburyHartford County, best late November · 23 checklists that week, 556 in all85%
  3. Mohawk SwampNew Haven County, best early August · 29 checklists that week, 3,247 in all79%
  4. Swan LakeTolland County, best early January · 57 checklists that week, 1,732 in all76%
  5. Seaside ParkFairfield County, best early December · 27 checklists that week, 1,151 in all73%
  6. Sherwood Island State ParkFairfield County, best late March · 278 checklists that week, 6,315 in all68%

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

Best time of day

In Connecticut, the Rock Pigeon is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (8.7% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (325) to judge1 am: too few checklists (367) to judge2 am: too few checklists (488) to judge3 am: too few checklists (792) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2722) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9489) to judge6 am: 7.1% of 33657 checklists7 am: 8.2% of 62964 checklists8 am: 9.1% of 70645 checklists9 am: 8.3% of 64870 checklists10 am: 8.4% of 58827 checklists11 am: 8.1% of 51689 checklists12 pm: 8.2% of 45288 checklists1 pm: 8.0% of 44765 checklists2 pm: 7.4% of 44173 checklists3 pm: 6.3% of 41979 checklists4 pm: 5.6% of 33219 checklists5 pm: 4.6% of 24828 checklists6 pm: 3.7% of 15856 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (8126) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1994) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (533) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (349) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (286) 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
January8.8%8.9%7.8%8.0%
February8.5%7.7%6.2%8.0%
March8.1%6.9%7.5%7.7%
April6.8%6.6%6.0%5.1%
May4.5%4.7%4.9%5.1%
June5.6%6.8%6.4%6.4%
July6.8%6.8%7.5%7.9%
August8.2%8.3%8.9%8.8%
September9.4%8.7%9.0%9.1%
October8.4%9.5%9.5%9.7%
November9.8%8.7%8.7%8.6%
December9.0%8.9%9.6%7.6%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Rock Pigeons arrive in Connecticut?
The Rock Pigeon is in Connecticut all year. It turns up on about 9.7% of checklists at its peak (late October) and on 4.7% in its quietest week (the second week of May).
When do Rock Pigeons leave Connecticut?
The Rock Pigeon does not leave Connecticut: it is reported all year, from 4.7% of checklists in the second week of May to 9.7% in late October.
When is the best time to see a Rock Pigeon in Connecticut?
The Rock Pigeon is reported most often in late October, on about 9.7% of Connecticut checklists.
Where in Connecticut are Rock Pigeons seen most often?
By county, New Haven County, Fairfield County, and Tolland County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Rock Pigeon (counties with at least 200 checklists).