WhenToBird

Corthylio calendula · Regulidae

When Do Ruby-crowned Kinglets Arrive in Arizona?

Adult male Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Photo: Jonathan Eisen, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ruby-crowned Kinglets are winter birds in Arizona: the first arrive in mid September, they are common by the second week of October, peak in the second week of December (35% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of April.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakDec 8-14the second week of December
Most gone byApr 8-14the second week of April

Best: the second week of December. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by the second week of April. Peak: on about 35% of Arizona checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 30% of 34758 checklistsJan 8-14: 30% of 29835 checklistsJan 15-21: 28% of 29279 checklistsJan 22-31: 29% of 39716 checklistsFeb 1-7: 28% of 27299 checklistsFeb 8-14: 26% of 28703 checklistsFeb 15-21: 24% of 35357 checklistsFeb 22-28: 27% of 29889 checklistsMar 1-7: 27% of 29932 checklistsMar 8-14: 26% of 32982 checklistsMar 15-21: 25% of 34731 checklistsMar 22-31: 22% of 50213 checklistsApr 1-7: 19% of 35788 checklistsApr 8-14: 15% of 38087 checklistsApr 15-21: 12% of 41520 checklistsApr 22-30: 8.5% of 55218 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.4% of 39688 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.8% of 39398 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.1% of 29562 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.9% of 36774 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.9% of 21313 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.0% of 19129 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 17922 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.8% of 21188 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 17325 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.3% of 16463 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.2% of 18642 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 31215 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 28163 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.2% of 31329 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 23878 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.5% of 28508 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.1% of 20878 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.9% of 19671 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.4% of 19859 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.5% of 25179 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 19420 checklistsOct 8-14: 17% of 21925 checklistsOct 15-21: 23% of 20995 checklistsOct 22-31: 27% of 29258 checklistsNov 1-7: 32% of 21269 checklistsNov 8-14: 34% of 22753 checklistsNov 15-21: 33% of 21982 checklistsNov 22-30: 34% of 29475 checklistsDec 1-7: 35% of 20810 checklistsDec 8-14: 34% of 22229 checklistsDec 15-21: 35% of 25148 checklistsDec 22-31: 33% of 39567 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 Arizona 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 Arizona

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Santa Cruz CountyBest the second week of December · 2350 checklists that week, 162,726 in all50%
  2. Greenlee CountyBest late November · 28 checklists that week, 2,745 in all46%
  3. Yavapai CountyBest mid November · 1432 checklists that week, 83,606 in all44%
  4. Gila CountyBest the second week of November · 222 checklists that week, 14,834 in all43%
  5. Cochise CountyBest the second week of November · 2215 checklists that week, 190,093 in all40%
  6. Yuma CountyBest the second week of November · 160 checklists that week, 14,687 in all36%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kentuck SpringMaricopa County, best mid February · 22 checklists that week, 462 in all97%
  2. Tonto National Forest (north)Maricopa County, best the second week of March · 23 checklists that week, 727 in all95%
  3. Tonto National Forest (north 2)Maricopa County, best late January · 20 checklists that week, 671 in all95%
  4. Tonto National Forest (east)Maricopa County, best late February · 54 checklists that week, 726 in all94%
  5. Posta Quemada CanyonPima County, best late December · 29 checklists that week, 764 in all94%
  6. Tonto National Forest (north 3)Maricopa County, best late November · 29 checklists that week, 257 in all93%

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

Best time of day

In Arizona, the Ruby-crowned Kinglet is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (23% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (488) to judge1 am: too few checklists (503) to judge2 am: too few checklists (489) to judge3 am: too few checklists (735) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4115) to judge5 am: 2.7% of 38350 checklists6 am: 9.9% of 118786 checklists7 am: 19% of 183415 checklists8 am: 23% of 187346 checklists9 am: 22% of 151342 checklists10 am: 20% of 124522 checklists11 am: 19% of 97088 checklists12 pm: 17% of 78110 checklists1 pm: 17% of 73059 checklists2 pm: 16% of 68912 checklists3 pm: 14% of 68060 checklists4 pm: 11% of 69387 checklists5 pm: 4.5% of 52951 checklists6 pm: 1.3% of 31061 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (16076) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2369) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1100) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (604) 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
January30%30%28%29%
February28%26%24%27%
March27%26%25%22%
April19%15%12%8.5%
May5.4%2.8%1.1%0.9%
June0.9%1.0%0.6%0.8%
July0.5%0.3%0.2%0.2%
August0.2%0.2%0.3%0.5%
September1.1%1.9%3.4%6.5%
October12%17%23%27%
November32%34%33%34%
December35%34%35%33%

Neighboring states

  • New Mexico: arrives early September, 2 weeks earlier than Arizona
  • Nevada: arrives the second week of August, 5 weeks earlier than Arizona
  • Utah: arrives late September, 1 week later than Arizona
  • California: arrives mid September, in the same week than Arizona

Common questions

When do Ruby-crowned Kinglets arrive in Arizona?
Ruby-crowned Kinglets are winter birds in Arizona: the first arrive in mid September, they are common by the second week of October, peak in the second week of December (35% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of April.
When do Ruby-crowned Kinglets leave Arizona?
Most Ruby-crowned Kinglets have left Arizona by the second week of April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of May.
When is the best time to see a Ruby-crowned Kinglet in Arizona?
The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is reported most often in the second week of December, on about 35% of Arizona checklists.
Where in Arizona are Ruby-crowned Kinglets seen most often?
By county, Santa Cruz County, Greenlee County, and Yavapai County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ruby-crowned Kinglet (counties with at least 200 checklists).