WhenToBird

Corthylio calendula · Regulidae

When Do Ruby-crowned Kinglets Arrive in Oregon?

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

Ruby-crowned Kinglets are winter birds in Oregon: the first arrive in the second week of September, they are common by early October, peak in early December (25% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 8-14the second week of September
Common byOct 1-7early October
PeakDec 1-7early December
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: early December. First arrivals the second week of September; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 25% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  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%Jan 1-7: 21% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 20% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 19% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 19% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 19% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 19% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 17% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 18% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 19% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 19% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 22% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 24% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 25% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 24% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 22% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 13% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 4.5% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.3% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.2% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.8% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.8% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.4% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.1% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.6% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.4% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.3% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.2% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.8% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.8% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.1% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 9.4% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 15% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 19% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 21% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 22% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 22% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 23% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 23% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 25% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 26% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 25% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 24% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 24% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Curry CountyBest early December · 161 checklists that week, 12,513 in all48%
  2. Harney CountyBest early October · 588 checklists that week, 40,943 in all38%
  3. Coos CountyBest early December · 447 checklists that week, 24,368 in all37%
  4. Jackson CountyBest early December · 884 checklists that week, 60,428 in all37%
  5. Tillamook CountyBest the second week of December · 696 checklists that week, 45,809 in all35%
  6. Josephine CountyBest late November · 404 checklists that week, 20,837 in all34%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge (Pigeon Butte)Benton County, best early April · 21 checklists that week, 224 in all94%
  2. Errol Heights PropertyMultnomah County, best late March · 61 checklists that week, 1,547 in all91%
  3. Skinner Butte ParkLane County, best late March · 109 checklists that week, 2,638 in all91%
  4. Military Slough Reservoirs (Cable Reservoir)Jackson County, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 774 in all90%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Ruby-crowned Kinglet is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (16% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 6.1% of 50677 checklists7 am: 14% of 125347 checklists8 am: 16% of 163668 checklists9 am: 16% of 160351 checklists10 am: 15% of 148940 checklists11 am: 14% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 14% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 14% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 13% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 13% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 9.3% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 5.4% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 2.9% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 0.8% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January21%20%19%19%
February19%19%17%18%
March19%19%22%24%
April25%24%22%13%
May4.5%2.3%1.2%0.8%
June0.8%0.8%1.4%1.1%
July0.6%0.4%0.4%0.3%
August0.2%0.2%0.3%0.4%
September0.8%1.8%5.1%9.4%
October15%19%21%22%
November22%23%23%25%
December26%25%24%24%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives the second week of September, in the same week than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives mid September, 1 week later than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives the second week of August, 4 weeks earlier than Oregon
  • California: arrives mid September, 1 week later than Oregon

Common questions

When do Ruby-crowned Kinglets arrive in Oregon?
Ruby-crowned Kinglets are winter birds in Oregon: the first arrive in the second week of September, they are common by early October, peak in early December (25% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do Ruby-crowned Kinglets leave Oregon?
Most Ruby-crowned Kinglets have left Oregon by late 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 Oregon?
The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is reported most often in early December, on about 25% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Ruby-crowned Kinglets seen most often?
By county, Curry County, Harney County, and Coos County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ruby-crowned Kinglet (counties with at least 200 checklists).