WhenToBird

Selasphorus rufus · Trochilidae

When Do Rufous Hummingbirds Arrive in California?

Adult male Rufous Hummingbird
Photo: Sandra Keller, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Rufous Hummingbirds arrive in California in early March, peak in the second week of April (4.7% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 1-7early March
Common byMar 1-7early March
PeakApr 8-14the second week of April
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: the second week of April. First arrivals early March; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 4.7% of California checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febrare
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.3% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.6% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.2% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.9% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.7% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.7% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.9% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.7% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.4% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.9% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.5% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.3% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.2% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.5% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.0% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.3% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.5% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.5% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.6% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.7% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.2% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.8% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.1% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.5% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Nevada CountyBest late August · 575 checklists that week, 25,896 in all22%
  2. Lake CountyBest the second week of April · 273 checklists that week, 12,989 in all22%
  3. Tehama CountyBest mid August · 211 checklists that week, 15,658 in all21%
  4. Madera CountyBest mid August · 171 checklists that week, 11,452 in all19%
  5. Kings CountyBest early September · 76 checklists that week, 3,688 in all19%
  6. Inyo CountyBest the second week of August · 449 checklists that week, 35,713 in all17%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake FreySolano County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 159 in all81%
  2. Bolinas Lagoon (Kent Island)Marin County, best early September · 28 checklists that week, 119 in all67%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Rufous Hummingbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.9% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 2.3% of 186053 checklists7 am: 1.7% of 444086 checklists8 am: 1.2% of 535846 checklists9 am: 1.0% of 486061 checklists10 am: 0.8% of 411130 checklists11 am: 0.8% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 0.8% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 0.7% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 1.0% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 1.5% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 1.6% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.3%0.6%
March1.2%1.9%2.7%3.7%
April4.9%4.7%4.4%2.9%
May1.5%0.8%0.3%0.2%
June0.1%0.1%0.2%0.5%
July1.0%1.3%1.5%1.8%
August2.1%2.5%2.6%2.7%
September2.2%1.8%1.1%0.5%
October0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives late June, 15 weeks later than California
  • Utah: arrives late June, 15 weeks later than California
  • Arizona: arrives late June, 15 weeks later than California
  • Oregon: arrives early March, in the same week than California

Common questions

When do Rufous Hummingbirds arrive in California?
Rufous Hummingbirds arrive in California in early March, peak in the second week of April (4.7% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Rufous Hummingbirds leave California?
Most Rufous Hummingbirds have left California by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Rufous Hummingbird in California?
The Rufous Hummingbird is reported most often in the second week of April, on about 4.7% of California checklists.
Where in California are Rufous Hummingbirds seen most often?
By county, Nevada County, Lake County, and Tehama County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Rufous Hummingbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).