WhenToBird

Anser rossii · Anatidae

When Do Ross's Geese Arrive in Nevada?

Adult Ross's Goose
Photo: Andrew Cannizzaro, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ross's Geese are winter birds in Nevada: they arrive in mid November, peak in mid December (2.3% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsNov 15-21mid November
Common byNov 15-21mid November
PeakDec 15-21mid December
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: mid December. First arrivals mid November; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 2.3% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 2.0% of 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.4% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.4% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.8% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.7% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.5% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.6% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.5% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.6% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.1% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.7% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.5% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.7% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.5% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.3% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.6% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.3% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.5% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.1% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.8% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.7% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.4% of 5101 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 Nevada 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Carson CityBest late November · 169 checklists that week, 6,992 in all5.0%
  2. Churchill CountyBest mid December · 48 checklists that week, 3,104 in all4.1%
  3. Clark CountyBest mid January · 1771 checklists that week, 80,458 in all3.9%
  4. Mineral CountyBest mid November · 14 checklists that week, 1,635 in all3.6%
  5. Douglas CountyBest early November · 109 checklists that week, 7,476 in all2.3%
  6. Washoe CountyBest early December · 905 checklists that week, 53,497 in all2.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Silver Bowl ParkClark County, best early January · 31 checklists that week, 143 in all58%
  2. Sunset Park Recreation CenterClark County, best mid January · 50 checklists that week, 1,997 in all30%
  3. Pitch Fork CoveClark County, best the second week of December · 58 checklists that week, 1,958 in all23%
  4. Tahoe-Carson SpeedwayCarson City, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 285 in all21%

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

Best time of day

In Nevada, the Ross's Goose is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 0.1% of 4313 checklists6 am: 0.5% of 17070 checklists7 am: 1.0% of 27389 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 24858 checklists9 am: 0.8% of 22012 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 19284 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 0.7% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 0.7% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 0.6% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 0.3% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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
January2.0%2.4%2.4%1.8%
February1.7%1.5%1.6%1.5%
March1.6%1.1%1.0%0.7%
April0.5%0.7%0.5%0.3%
May0.4%0.3%0.2%0.1%
June0.1%0%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0%0%0%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0.6%
November0.3%0.6%1.5%2.1%
December1.8%2.8%1.7%2.4%

Neighboring states

  • California: arrives early November, 2 weeks earlier than Nevada
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of February, 11 weeks later than Nevada
  • New Mexico: arrives early November, 2 weeks earlier than Nevada
  • Colorado: arrives early November, 2 weeks earlier than Nevada

Common questions

When do Ross's Geese arrive in Nevada?
Ross's Geese are winter birds in Nevada: they arrive in mid November, peak in mid December (2.3% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Ross's Geese leave Nevada?
Most Ross's Geese have left Nevada by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Ross's Goose in Nevada?
The Ross's Goose is reported most often in mid December, on about 2.3% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Ross's Geese seen most often?
By county, Carson City, Churchill County, and Clark County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ross's Goose (counties with at least 200 checklists).