WhenToBird

Lonchura punctulata · Estrildidae

When Do Scaly-breasted Munias Arrive in Texas?

Scaly-breasted Munias reach Texas in late April, are common by early June, peak in mid September (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early February.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 22-30late April
Common byJun 1-7early June
PeakSep 15-21mid September
Most gone byFeb 1-7early February

Best: mid September. First arrivals late April; most are gone by early February. Peak: on about 1.4% of Texas checklists.

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

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.5% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.5% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.5% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.5% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.5% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.4% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.4% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.5% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.3% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.3% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.3% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.5% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.4% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.6% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.4% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.5% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.4% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.5% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.6% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.6% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.7% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.7% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.4% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.4% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.4% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.5% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.4% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.3% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.4% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.3% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.3% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.0% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.7% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.0% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.9% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.9% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.9% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.8% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.6% of 73015 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 Texas 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 Texas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fort Bend CountyBest late September · 1382 checklists that week, 57,229 in all22%
  2. Harris CountyBest mid October · 3551 checklists that week, 205,225 in all7.9%
  3. Victoria CountyBest mid June · 45 checklists that week, 5,873 in all1.9%
  4. Galveston CountyBest late November · 2141 checklists that week, 129,637 in all1.9%
  5. DeWitt CountyBest early December · 68 checklists that week, 4,050 in all1.3%
  6. Nueces CountyBest the second week of December · 1442 checklists that week, 86,594 in all0.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kleb Woods Nature PreserveHarris County, best late August · 62 checklists that week, 2,928 in all71%
  2. Brazos River ParkFort Bend County, best late July · 27 checklists that week, 1,455 in all67%
  3. Gannoway LakeFort Bend County, best mid September · 43 checklists that week, 310 in all56%
  4. Cullinan/Oyster CreekFort Bend County, best early October · 180 checklists that week, 7,611 in all50%
  5. Cameron FieldHarris County, best late October · 189 checklists that week, 2,985 in all50%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Scaly-breasted Munia is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (898) to judge1 am: too few checklists (756) to judge2 am: too few checklists (663) to judge3 am: too few checklists (741) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1537) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6113) to judge6 am: 1.4% of 74687 checklists7 am: 1.5% of 285131 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 329960 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 267889 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 218205 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 0.3% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 0.3% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 0.2% of 53396 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (17221) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4048) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1965) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (990) 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
January0.5%0.5%0.5%0.5%
February0.5%0.4%0.4%0.5%
March0.4%0.3%0.4%0.4%
April0.3%0.3%0.3%0.3%
May0.4%0.5%0.4%0.4%
June0.6%0.4%0.5%0.4%
July0.5%0.5%0.6%0.6%
August0.7%0.7%1.1%1.4%
September1.4%1.4%1.5%1.4%
October1.3%1.4%1.3%1.3%
November1.0%0.7%1.0%0.9%
December0.9%0.9%0.8%0.6%

Neighboring states

  • Mississippi: arrives early July, 9 weeks later than Texas
  • Alabama: arrives late July, 12 weeks later than Texas
  • California: arrives early February, 11 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Hawaii: year-round, peaks mid December

Common questions

When do Scaly-breasted Munias arrive in Texas?
Scaly-breasted Munias reach Texas in late April, are common by early June, peak in mid September (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early February.
When do Scaly-breasted Munias leave Texas?
Most Scaly-breasted Munias have left Texas by early February, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early April.
When is the best time to see a Scaly-breasted Munia in Texas?
The Scaly-breasted Munia is reported most often in mid September, on about 1.4% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Scaly-breasted Munias seen most often?
By county, Fort Bend County, Harris County, and Victoria County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Scaly-breasted Munia (counties with at least 200 checklists).