WhenToBird

Piranga olivacea · Cardinalidae

When Do Scarlet Tanagers Arrive in Ohio?

Adult Scarlet Tanager
Photo: Shirley Zundell, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Scarlet Tanagers reach Ohio in mid April, are common by late April, peak in mid May (14% of checklists), and most are gone by late July.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 22-30late April
PeakMay 15-21mid May
Most gone byJul 22-31late July

Best: mid May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by late July. Peak: on about 14% of Ohio checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  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% of 46637 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 31056 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 30129 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 38665 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 27203 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 30626 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 40705 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 31391 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 32914 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 33973 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 33678 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 49889 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 41225 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 47174 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 47017 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.1% of 73055 checklistsMay 1-7: 10% of 80637 checklistsMay 8-14: 14% of 102552 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 64582 checklistsMay 22-31: 10% of 52766 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.4% of 29279 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.3% of 25773 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.5% of 23163 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.4% of 27794 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.9% of 23334 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.5% of 22147 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.4% of 20998 checklistsJul 22-31: 4.3% of 29749 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.8% of 22899 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.8% of 21972 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.4% of 22215 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.5% of 35087 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.2% of 29148 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.3% of 28042 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.8% of 26751 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.0% of 32398 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.1% of 26209 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 26809 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 23504 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 33269 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 25563 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 23810 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 22127 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 29449 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 22370 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 21581 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 24232 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 36084 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 Ohio 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 Ohio

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Vinton CountyBest the second week of May · 228 checklists that week, 3,797 in all46%
  2. Lawrence CountyBest the second week of September · 53 checklists that week, 3,077 in all39%
  3. Harrison CountyBest mid May · 108 checklists that week, 3,150 in all38%
  4. Morgan CountyBest mid June · 34 checklists that week, 2,908 in all37%
  5. Athens CountyBest the second week of May · 982 checklists that week, 25,255 in all36%
  6. Columbiana CountyBest mid May · 190 checklists that week, 5,638 in all36%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lawrence Woods Dedicated Nature PreserveHardin County, best mid May · 44 checklists that week, 523 in all84%
  2. Wayne National Forest (west)Athens County, best the second week of May · 27 checklists that week, 191 in all79%
  3. Gallagher / Springfield FenClark County, best mid May · 28 checklists that week, 532 in all77%
  4. Blackhand Gorge Dedicated Nature PreserveLicking County, best mid May · 43 checklists that week, 714 in all72%
  5. Batelle-Darby Creek Metropark (south)Franklin County, best the second week of May · 39 checklists that week, 420 in all72%
  6. Miami Whitewater Forest (south)Hamilton County, best early May · 51 checklists that week, 279 in all71%

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

Best time of day

In Ohio, the Scarlet Tanager is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (7.9% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (574) to judge1 am: too few checklists (609) to judge2 am: too few checklists (466) to judge3 am: too few checklists (478) to judge4 am: too few checklists (662) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4366) to judge6 am: 11% of 43093 checklists7 am: 7.0% of 142017 checklists8 am: 4.9% of 205296 checklists9 am: 3.9% of 196322 checklists10 am: 3.3% of 170882 checklists11 am: 2.8% of 144567 checklists12 pm: 2.5% of 126551 checklists1 pm: 2.4% of 117855 checklists2 pm: 2.2% of 112869 checklists3 pm: 2.0% of 109786 checklists4 pm: 2.0% of 103116 checklists5 pm: 2.5% of 78409 checklists6 pm: 3.2% of 56785 checklists7 pm: 3.2% of 37923 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (14954) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2710) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (854) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (486) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0%0.1%0.4%4.1%
May10%14%15%10%
June8.4%8.3%8.5%7.4%
July6.9%6.5%5.4%4.3%
August2.8%1.8%1.4%1.5%
September2.2%3.3%3.8%3.0%
October1.1%0.3%0.1%0%
November0.1%0%0%0%
December0%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • West Virginia: arrives mid April, in the same week than Ohio
  • Indiana: arrives mid April, in the same week than Ohio
  • Michigan: arrives late April, 1 week later than Ohio
  • Kentucky: arrives the second week of April, 1 week earlier than Ohio

Common questions

When do Scarlet Tanagers arrive in Ohio?
Scarlet Tanagers reach Ohio in mid April, are common by late April, peak in mid May (14% of checklists), and most are gone by late July.
When do Scarlet Tanagers leave Ohio?
Most Scarlet Tanagers have left Ohio by late July, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early October.
When is the best time to see a Scarlet Tanager in Ohio?
The Scarlet Tanager is reported most often in mid May, on about 14% of Ohio checklists.
Where in Ohio are Scarlet Tanagers seen most often?
By county, Vinton County, Lawrence County, and Harrison County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Scarlet Tanager (counties with at least 200 checklists).