WhenToBird

Columba livia · Columbidae

When Do Rock Pigeons Arrive in Illinois?

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

The Rock Pigeon is in Illinois all year. It turns up on about 11% of checklists at its peak (the second week of August) and on 7.4% in its quietest week (mid June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekAug 8-14the second week of August
Quietest weekJun 15-21mid June

Best: the second week of August. Here all year. Peak: on about 11% of Illinois checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  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%15%Jan 1-7: 8.8% of 29700 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.6% of 20189 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.5% of 19784 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.7% of 26641 checklistsFeb 1-7: 8.5% of 20478 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.4% of 21967 checklistsFeb 15-21: 7.0% of 28735 checklistsFeb 22-28: 8.7% of 24223 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.5% of 26775 checklistsMar 8-14: 8.5% of 27579 checklistsMar 15-21: 8.4% of 27193 checklistsMar 22-31: 8.3% of 42278 checklistsApr 1-7: 8.9% of 34579 checklistsApr 8-14: 8.9% of 38290 checklistsApr 15-21: 9.2% of 39261 checklistsApr 22-30: 8.9% of 59584 checklistsMay 1-7: 8.8% of 60485 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.5% of 59647 checklistsMay 15-21: 8.7% of 43173 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.5% of 47913 checklistsJun 1-7: 7.9% of 31151 checklistsJun 8-14: 7.1% of 27692 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.4% of 23983 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.8% of 28448 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.8% of 21273 checklistsJul 8-14: 9.5% of 19284 checklistsJul 15-21: 10% of 17712 checklistsJul 22-31: 10% of 24500 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 18498 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 19331 checklistsAug 15-21: 10% of 19983 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 31892 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 26396 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 25011 checklistsSep 15-21: 11% of 23597 checklistsSep 22-30: 10% of 30638 checklistsOct 1-7: 11% of 23949 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.8% of 24412 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.4% of 22359 checklistsOct 22-31: 9.2% of 29794 checklistsNov 1-7: 9.7% of 21877 checklistsNov 8-14: 9.7% of 19742 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.6% of 18989 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.0% of 23905 checklistsDec 1-7: 9.0% of 16935 checklistsDec 8-14: 9.7% of 16687 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 20931 checklistsDec 22-31: 9.3% of 29011 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 Illinois 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 Illinois

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Wabash CountyBest late July · 10 checklists that week, 602 in all32%
  2. Alexander CountyBest early August · 40 checklists that week, 2,108 in all30%
  3. Douglas CountyBest late November · 11 checklists that week, 992 in all26%
  4. Henry CountyBest late August · 78 checklists that week, 3,403 in all24%
  5. Cook CountyBest late July · 7146 checklists that week, 432,644 in all23%
  6. Stephenson CountyBest the second week of December · 13 checklists that week, 2,340 in all20%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Goose IslandCook County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 281 in all91%
  2. Kankakee River DamKankakee County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 1,077 in all89%
  3. Devon Avenue BeachCook County, best late May · 24 checklists that week, 817 in all87%
  4. Millennium ParkCook County, best the second week of May · 50 checklists that week, 717 in all83%

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

Best time of day

In Illinois, the Rock Pigeon is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (10% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (484) to judge1 am: too few checklists (631) to judge2 am: too few checklists (485) to judge3 am: too few checklists (610) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2321) to judge5 am: too few checklists (23536) to judge6 am: 12% of 95511 checklists7 am: 9.6% of 164584 checklists8 am: 9.1% of 163654 checklists9 am: 8.7% of 141804 checklists10 am: 8.6% of 122882 checklists11 am: 9.2% of 100640 checklists12 pm: 10% of 89894 checklists1 pm: 9.5% of 82729 checklists2 pm: 8.4% of 79801 checklists3 pm: 8.2% of 82169 checklists4 pm: 8.4% of 75124 checklists5 pm: 8.4% of 57708 checklists6 pm: 6.3% of 41843 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (20943) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6131) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1677) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (843) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (448) 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%8.6%8.5%8.7%
February8.5%7.4%7.0%8.7%
March8.5%8.5%8.4%8.3%
April8.9%8.9%9.2%8.9%
May8.8%8.5%8.7%8.5%
June7.9%7.1%7.4%7.8%
July8.8%9.5%10%10%
August11%11%10%11%
September11%11%11%10%
October11%9.8%9.4%9.2%
November9.7%9.7%9.6%9.0%
December9.0%9.7%11%9.3%

Neighboring states

  • Indiana: year-round, peaks mid August
  • Wisconsin: year-round, peaks early March
  • Michigan: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Iowa: year-round, peaks late December

Common questions

When do Rock Pigeons arrive in Illinois?
The Rock Pigeon is in Illinois all year. It turns up on about 11% of checklists at its peak (the second week of August) and on 7.4% in its quietest week (mid June).
When do Rock Pigeons leave Illinois?
The Rock Pigeon does not leave Illinois: it is reported all year, from 7.4% of checklists in mid June to 11% in the second week of August.
When is the best time to see a Rock Pigeon in Illinois?
The Rock Pigeon is reported most often in the second week of August, on about 11% of Illinois checklists.
Where in Illinois are Rock Pigeons seen most often?
By county, Wabash County, Alexander County, and Douglas County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Rock Pigeon (counties with at least 200 checklists).