WhenToBird

Antigone canadensis · Gruidae

When Do Sandhill Cranes Arrive in Alaska?

Adult Sandhill crane
Photo: Cathy Perkins, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Sandhill Cranes reach Alaska in the second week of April, are common by mid April, peak in early May (18% of checklists), and most are gone by mid September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 8-14the second week of April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone bySep 15-21mid September

Best: early May. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by mid September. Peak: on about 18% of Alaska checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 3788 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 2852 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 2810 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 3629 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 2519 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 2927 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 3743 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 2846 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 2904 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 3073 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 3359 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 5855 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 4329 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.2% of 4949 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.5% of 7114 checklistsApr 22-30: 17% of 10916 checklistsMay 1-7: 19% of 11827 checklistsMay 8-14: 18% of 14115 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 12152 checklistsMay 22-31: 12% of 19919 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.9% of 15816 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.0% of 17194 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.2% of 15943 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.4% of 16192 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.2% of 9815 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.7% of 8263 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.4% of 7081 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.1% of 9434 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.2% of 6380 checklistsAug 8-14: 10% of 6258 checklistsAug 15-21: 11% of 6114 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 8189 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.8% of 5848 checklistsSep 8-14: 8.7% of 4853 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.7% of 4415 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.3% of 5086 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.8% of 3576 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 4212 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 3339 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 4169 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 2844 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 2753 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.2% of 2291 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 3066 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 2199 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 2472 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 3071 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 3442 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 Alaska 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 Alaska

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kusilvak Census AreaBest the second week of May · 14 checklists that week, 573 in all59%
  2. Fairbanks North Star BoroughBest mid August · 506 checklists that week, 23,771 in all31%
  3. Northwest Arctic BoroughBest the second week of May · 29 checklists that week, 1,386 in all30%
  4. Kenai Peninsula BoroughBest early May · 2442 checklists that week, 49,772 in all29%
  5. Southeast Fairbanks Census AreaBest the second week of May · 66 checklists that week, 3,009 in all27%
  6. Anchorage MunicipalityBest early May · 2484 checklists that week, 65,703 in all27%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Creamer's FieldFairbanks North Star Borough, best mid August · 71 checklists that week, 2,118 in all96%
  2. Goose BayMatanuska-Susitna Borough, best early May · 23 checklists that week, 274 in all92%
  3. Anchorage Coastal Wildlife RefugeAnchorage Municipality, best early May · 100 checklists that week, 735 in all92%
  4. Campbell Creek EstuaryAnchorage Municipality, best the second week of June · 21 checklists that week, 720 in all91%
  5. Creamer's Field (north)Fairbanks North Star Borough, best late August · 23 checklists that week, 315 in all89%

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

Best time of day

In Alaska, the Sandhill Crane is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 pm (12% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (549) to judge1 am: too few checklists (365) to judge2 am: too few checklists (291) to judge3 am: too few checklists (624) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1241) to judge5 am: too few checklists (3532) to judge6 am: 11% of 9751 checklists7 am: 10% of 17236 checklists8 am: 7.9% of 24936 checklists9 am: 6.9% of 30139 checklists10 am: 6.4% of 30866 checklists11 am: 5.8% of 28207 checklists12 pm: 5.4% of 25650 checklists1 pm: 5.4% of 24144 checklists2 pm: 5.5% of 23323 checklists3 pm: 6.0% of 20763 checklists4 pm: 6.9% of 18245 checklists5 pm: 7.7% of 14895 checklists6 pm: 9.9% of 11707 checklists7 pm: 11% of 9365 checklists8 pm: 13% of 6934 checklists9 pm: too few checklists (4176) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2050) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (952) 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%0.1%0.1%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0.1%0%0%
April0.2%0.2%6.5%17%
May19%18%15%12%
June8.9%8.0%7.2%6.4%
July5.2%5.7%6.4%7.1%
August8.2%10%11%11%
September9.8%8.7%5.7%3.3%
October0.8%0.3%0.3%0.2%
November0.1%0.1%0.2%0.1%
December0%0%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives the second week of September, 20 weeks later than Alaska
  • Oregon: arrives early August, 15 weeks later than Alaska
  • Idaho: arrives late February, 6 weeks earlier than Alaska
  • Montana: arrives early March, 5 weeks earlier than Alaska

Common questions

When do Sandhill Cranes arrive in Alaska?
Sandhill Cranes reach Alaska in the second week of April, are common by mid April, peak in early May (18% of checklists), and most are gone by mid September.
When do Sandhill Cranes leave Alaska?
Most Sandhill Cranes have left Alaska by mid September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early October.
When is the best time to see a Sandhill Crane in Alaska?
The Sandhill Crane is reported most often in early May, on about 18% of Alaska checklists.
Where in Alaska are Sandhill Cranes seen most often?
By county, Kusilvak Census Area, Fairbanks North Star Borough, and Northwest Arctic Borough have the highest peak reporting rates for the Sandhill Crane (counties with at least 200 checklists).