WhenToBird

Thalasseus sandvicensis · Laridae

When Do Sandwich Terns Arrive in Florida?

Adult Sandwich Tern
Photo: Roy Lowry, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Sandwich Terns reach Florida in mid March, are common by the second week of April, peak in late August (8.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byApr 8-14the second week of April
PeakAug 22-31late August
Most gone byDec 15-21mid December

Best: late August. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by mid December. Peak: on about 8.5% of Florida checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 2.4% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.3% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.9% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.9% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.8% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.7% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.4% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.7% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.6% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.6% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.7% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.1% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.7% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.1% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.2% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.1% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.7% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.7% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.2% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.3% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.6% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.9% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 4.3% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.5% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.5% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 4.9% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.1% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.9% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.9% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 8.0% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.3% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 8.5% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 8.6% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 7.7% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.7% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.8% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 5.6% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.7% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.6% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.7% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.7% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.1% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.9% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.6% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.8% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.5% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.0% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.9% of 82405 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 Florida 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Franklin CountyBest mid August · 190 checklists that week, 20,336 in all29%
  2. Escambia CountyBest the second week of August · 330 checklists that week, 25,457 in all25%
  3. Walton CountyBest the second week of August · 106 checklists that week, 9,530 in all24%
  4. Manatee CountyBest mid September · 771 checklists that week, 63,443 in all23%
  5. Pinellas CountyBest early September · 2163 checklists that week, 148,901 in all22%
  6. Gulf CountyBest early August · 50 checklists that week, 5,038 in all20%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bean PointManatee County, best the second week of September · 22 checklists that week, 600 in all98%
  2. Lido KeySarasota County, best late September · 24 checklists that week, 1,322 in all98%
  3. Bishops BayouManatee County, best late June · 25 checklists that week, 786 in all98%
  4. Siesta BeachSarasota County, best early October · 38 checklists that week, 3,512 in all97%

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

Best time of day

In Florida, the Sandwich Tern is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.8% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 4.2% of 94591 checklists7 am: 5.0% of 296183 checklists8 am: 4.1% of 319987 checklists9 am: 3.5% of 254830 checklists10 am: 3.5% of 209480 checklists11 am: 3.3% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 3.1% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 3.1% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 3.1% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 3.2% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 3.0% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 2.8% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 2.8% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) 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
January2.4%2.3%1.9%1.9%
February1.8%1.7%1.4%1.7%
March1.6%1.6%1.7%2.1%
April2.7%3.1%3.2%3.1%
May2.7%2.7%3.2%3.3%
June3.6%3.9%4.3%4.5%
July4.5%4.9%5.1%5.9%
August7.9%8.0%8.3%8.5%
September8.6%7.7%6.7%5.8%
October5.6%4.7%4.6%4.7%
November4.7%5.1%4.9%4.6%
December3.8%3.5%3.0%2.9%

Neighboring states

  • Georgia: arrives early April, 2 weeks later than Florida
  • South Carolina: arrives early April, 2 weeks later than Florida
  • Alabama: arrives late March, 1 week later than Florida
  • Mississippi: arrives the second week of April, 3 weeks later than Florida

Common questions

When do Sandwich Terns arrive in Florida?
Sandwich Terns reach Florida in mid March, are common by the second week of April, peak in late August (8.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.
When do Sandwich Terns leave Florida?
Most Sandwich Terns have left Florida by mid December, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late January.
When is the best time to see a Sandwich Tern in Florida?
The Sandwich Tern is reported most often in late August, on about 8.5% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are Sandwich Terns seen most often?
By county, Franklin County, Escambia County, and Walton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Sandwich Tern (counties with at least 200 checklists).