WhenToBird

Columba livia · Columbidae

When Do Rock Pigeons Arrive in Indiana?

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

The Rock Pigeon is in Indiana all year. It turns up on about 6.0% of checklists at its peak (mid August) and on 3.2% in its quietest week (early May).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekAug 15-21mid August
Quietest weekMay 1-7early May

Best: mid August. Here all year. Peak: on about 6.0% of Indiana checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  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%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 5.2% of 18123 checklistsJan 8-14: 4.6% of 12006 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.0% of 12403 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.2% of 16181 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.2% of 12546 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.5% of 14250 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.3% of 18077 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.8% of 13590 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.5% of 14545 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.5% of 14594 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.3% of 13894 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.4% of 22400 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.2% of 18069 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.8% of 19579 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.4% of 19518 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.1% of 30544 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.1% of 28430 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.3% of 30624 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.3% of 22920 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.6% of 21234 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.8% of 12279 checklistsJun 8-14: 4.0% of 10904 checklistsJun 15-21: 4.1% of 9488 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.2% of 11362 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.6% of 9947 checklistsJul 8-14: 4.4% of 9585 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.5% of 8929 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.2% of 12639 checklistsAug 1-7: 5.6% of 9528 checklistsAug 8-14: 6.3% of 9451 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.0% of 9442 checklistsAug 22-31: 5.9% of 14969 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.5% of 12628 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.3% of 11793 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.0% of 11396 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.9% of 14203 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.9% of 11365 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.7% of 12092 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.4% of 10440 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.8% of 13883 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.1% of 10476 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.5% of 9776 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.7% of 9035 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.5% of 12547 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.2% of 9078 checklistsDec 8-14: 5.3% of 8732 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.0% of 11024 checklistsDec 22-31: 5.6% of 15432 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 Indiana 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 Indiana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. LaGrange CountyBest mid December · 115 checklists that week, 7,944 in all39%
  2. Marshall CountyBest the second week of October · 14 checklists that week, 1,525 in all37%
  3. Benton CountyBest late January · 11 checklists that week, 993 in all31%
  4. Rush CountyBest late September · 15 checklists that week, 460 in all27%
  5. Adams CountyBest early November · 26 checklists that week, 1,306 in all24%
  6. Scott CountyBest late February · 16 checklists that week, 798 in all23%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lakefront ParkLake County, best late March · 24 checklists that week, 1,190 in all73%
  2. RoxanaLake County, best early January · 34 checklists that week, 279 in all59%
  3. Fort Benjamin Harrison State ParkMarion County, best mid October · 35 checklists that week, 1,724 in all48%
  4. Ashland ParkClark County, best the second week of March · 25 checklists that week, 536 in all47%
  5. Carlson/Oxbow ParkLake County, best late August · 49 checklists that week, 470 in all46%

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

Best time of day

In Indiana, the Rock Pigeon is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (6.2% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (240) to judge1 am: too few checklists (231) to judge2 am: too few checklists (222) to judge3 am: too few checklists (202) to judge4 am: too few checklists (674) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4329) to judge6 am: 7.0% of 20589 checklists7 am: 5.9% of 58470 checklists8 am: 5.1% of 86931 checklists9 am: 4.0% of 78239 checklists10 am: 3.8% of 66080 checklists11 am: 3.8% of 54904 checklists12 pm: 3.9% of 47610 checklists1 pm: 4.6% of 44814 checklists2 pm: 4.3% of 43790 checklists3 pm: 4.7% of 42983 checklists4 pm: 4.2% of 45349 checklists5 pm: 3.7% of 35993 checklists6 pm: 3.0% of 26447 checklists7 pm: 2.6% of 17740 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (7603) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1721) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (272) 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
January5.2%4.6%4.0%4.2%
February4.2%3.5%3.3%4.8%
March4.5%4.5%4.3%4.4%
April4.2%3.8%3.4%3.1%
May3.1%3.3%3.3%3.6%
June3.8%4.0%4.1%4.2%
July4.6%4.4%4.5%5.2%
August5.6%6.3%6.0%5.9%
September5.5%5.3%5.0%4.9%
October4.9%4.7%4.4%4.8%
November5.1%4.5%4.7%4.5%
December5.2%5.3%6.0%5.6%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: year-round, peaks the second week of August
  • Kentucky: year-round, peaks late August
  • Ohio: year-round, peaks late December
  • Michigan: year-round, peaks the second week of December

Common questions

When do Rock Pigeons arrive in Indiana?
The Rock Pigeon is in Indiana all year. It turns up on about 6.0% of checklists at its peak (mid August) and on 3.2% in its quietest week (early May).
When do Rock Pigeons leave Indiana?
The Rock Pigeon does not leave Indiana: it is reported all year, from 3.2% of checklists in early May to 6.0% in mid August.
When is the best time to see a Rock Pigeon in Indiana?
The Rock Pigeon is reported most often in mid August, on about 6.0% of Indiana checklists.
Where in Indiana are Rock Pigeons seen most often?
By county, LaGrange County, Marshall County, and Benton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Rock Pigeon (counties with at least 200 checklists).