WhenToBird

Oxyura jamaicensis · Anatidae

When Do Ruddy Ducks Arrive in Iowa?

Adult male Ruddy Duck
Photo: Anne Parsons, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Ruddy Ducks are winter birds in Iowa: the first arrive in late September, they are common by early October, peak in early November (10% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 22-30late September
Common byOct 1-7early October
PeakNov 1-7early November
Most gone byDec 15-21mid December

Best: early November. First arrivals late September; most are gone by mid December. Peak: on about 10% of Iowa checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Seprare
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 1.5% of 5551 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 3498 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.7% of 3803 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.7% of 4807 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.8% of 3613 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.3% of 4173 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.4% of 5796 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.3% of 4394 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.3% of 5295 checklistsMar 8-14: 3.8% of 5679 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.2% of 5418 checklistsMar 22-31: 8.0% of 8613 checklistsApr 1-7: 8.7% of 6970 checklistsApr 8-14: 7.5% of 7511 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.8% of 8321 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.0% of 11976 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.6% of 11725 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.4% of 12626 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.9% of 9372 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.0% of 10330 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 5472 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.4% of 4568 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.4% of 3870 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.5% of 4780 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 4201 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 3605 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.5% of 3621 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 5093 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 3931 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.5% of 3488 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.4% of 3802 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.3% of 6293 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 5328 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 4622 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.3% of 4367 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.9% of 6086 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.8% of 4708 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.5% of 4791 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.7% of 4429 checklistsOct 22-31: 10% of 5633 checklistsNov 1-7: 10% of 4090 checklistsNov 8-14: 11% of 3416 checklistsNov 15-21: 8.1% of 3398 checklistsNov 22-30: 6.3% of 4679 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.8% of 3442 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.7% of 3322 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.5% of 4619 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.7% of 5113 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 Iowa 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 Iowa

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Palo Alto CountyBest early April · 11 checklists that week, 460 in all36%
  2. Carroll CountyBest the second week of November · 20 checklists that week, 1,515 in all36%
  3. Worth CountyBest early April · 12 checklists that week, 333 in all35%
  4. Clay CountyBest early April · 17 checklists that week, 844 in all33%
  5. Guthrie CountyBest early November · 21 checklists that week, 1,167 in all32%
  6. Cerro Gordo CountyBest the second week of November · 23 checklists that week, 1,853 in all28%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Manawa State ParkPottawattamie County, best early April · 24 checklists that week, 599 in all68%
  2. Saylorville Recreation Area (Rock Creek)Polk County, best early November · 94 checklists that week, 1,401 in all67%
  3. West LakeJohnson County, best late October · 29 checklists that week, 307 in all58%
  4. Hendrickson Marsh Wildlife Management AreaStory County, best early April · 21 checklists that week, 556 in all54%
  5. Trumbull LakeClay County, best late May · 25 checklists that week, 206 in all51%
  6. Gray's Lake ParkPolk County, best early April · 22 checklists that week, 406 in all51%

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

Best time of day

In Iowa, the Ruddy Duck is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (3.3% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (96) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (67) to judge3 am: too few checklists (82) to judge4 am: too few checklists (201) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1888) to judge6 am: 1.7% of 11313 checklists7 am: 2.3% of 25717 checklists8 am: 2.9% of 29755 checklists9 am: 2.9% of 28897 checklists10 am: 3.2% of 26343 checklists11 am: 3.4% of 21210 checklists12 pm: 3.3% of 17662 checklists1 pm: 3.2% of 16595 checklists2 pm: 3.0% of 16405 checklists3 pm: 3.1% of 17030 checklists4 pm: 3.1% of 17378 checklists5 pm: 3.3% of 14251 checklists6 pm: 2.6% of 10349 checklists7 pm: 1.7% of 6233 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2002) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (392) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (186) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (87) 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
January1.5%1.1%0.7%0.7%
February0.8%0.3%0.4%1.3%
March2.3%3.8%5.2%8.0%
April8.7%7.5%6.8%4.0%
May1.6%1.4%0.9%1.0%
June0.4%0.4%0.4%0.5%
July0.5%0.2%0.5%0.4%
August0.4%0.5%0.4%0.3%
September0.1%0.1%0.3%0.9%
October1.8%3.5%4.7%10%
November10%11%8.1%6.3%
December5.8%3.7%2.5%1.7%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: arrives the second week of October, 2 weeks later than Iowa
  • Wisconsin: arrives early March, 21 weeks later than Iowa
  • Minnesota: arrives mid March, 23 weeks later than Iowa
  • Illinois: arrives early October, 1 week later than Iowa

Common questions

When do Ruddy Ducks arrive in Iowa?
Ruddy Ducks are winter birds in Iowa: the first arrive in late September, they are common by early October, peak in early November (10% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.
When do Ruddy Ducks leave Iowa?
Most Ruddy Ducks have left Iowa by mid December, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of January.
When is the best time to see a Ruddy Duck in Iowa?
The Ruddy Duck is reported most often in early November, on about 10% of Iowa checklists.
Where in Iowa are Ruddy Ducks seen most often?
By county, Palo Alto County, Carroll County, and Worth County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ruddy Duck (counties with at least 200 checklists).