WhenToBird

Piranga olivacea · Cardinalidae

When Do Scarlet Tanagers Arrive in South Carolina?

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

Scarlet Tanagers arrive in South Carolina in the second week of April, peak in early May (4.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of July.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 8-14the second week of April
Common byApr 8-14the second week of April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone byJul 8-14the second week of July

Best: early May. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by the second week of July. Peak: on about 4.9% of South Carolina checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augrare
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  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% of 15487 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 11691 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 11994 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 16225 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 12192 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 14044 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 18483 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 12045 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 11511 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 11704 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 11526 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 17386 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 13148 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.5% of 13193 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.2% of 13936 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.0% of 19002 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.7% of 14133 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.0% of 13668 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.0% of 11064 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.6% of 14461 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.4% of 10231 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.4% of 9417 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.5% of 8012 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.4% of 9720 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.9% of 7907 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.0% of 7338 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.5% of 7312 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.3% of 10877 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 7816 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 7655 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 7797 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.3% of 11246 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.7% of 8956 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.6% of 8929 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.4% of 9389 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.1% of 13028 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.6% of 11063 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.9% of 10968 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.1% of 10264 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 12917 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 8802 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 8339 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 8798 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 12925 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 8541 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 8609 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 9961 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 17541 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 South Carolina 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 South Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pickens CountyBest early May · 490 checklists that week, 13,660 in all20%
  2. Oconee CountyBest early May · 344 checklists that week, 10,415 in all19%
  3. Cherokee CountyBest early May · 62 checklists that week, 2,823 in all16%
  4. Marlboro CountyBest early May · 15 checklists that week, 686 in all16%
  5. Laurens CountyBest early May · 79 checklists that week, 2,316 in all15%
  6. Lee CountyBest late September · 25 checklists that week, 1,310 in all15%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Nine Times PreservePickens County, best early May · 35 checklists that week, 301 in all65%
  2. Ashmore Heritage Preserve / Wildlife Management AreaGreenville County, best late April · 35 checklists that week, 150 in all65%
  3. Cedar Falls ParkGreenville County, best early May · 66 checklists that week, 651 in all61%
  4. Oconee State ParkOconee County, best early May · 37 checklists that week, 202 in all47%
  5. Caesars Head State ParkGreenville County, best early May · 23 checklists that week, 588 in all44%
  6. Tall Pine LakesGreenville County, best late April · 52 checklists that week, 423 in all42%

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

Best time of day

In South Carolina, the Scarlet Tanager is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (2.2% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (222) to judge1 am: too few checklists (160) to judge2 am: too few checklists (132) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (267) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1898) to judge6 am: 2.7% of 19280 checklists7 am: 2.1% of 66492 checklists8 am: 1.5% of 73941 checklists9 am: 1.1% of 63039 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 52652 checklists11 am: 0.8% of 41908 checklists12 pm: 0.7% of 36782 checklists1 pm: 0.7% of 33300 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 32248 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 35451 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 34410 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 27073 checklists6 pm: 0.7% of 17375 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (10313) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2756) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (672) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (412) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (256) 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%
April0.1%0.5%2.2%5.0%
May5.7%4.0%2.0%1.6%
June1.4%1.4%1.5%1.4%
July1.9%1.0%0.5%0.3%
August0.2%0.3%0.3%0.3%
September0.7%1.6%3.4%4.1%
October4.6%2.9%1.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • North Carolina: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than South Carolina
  • Georgia: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than South Carolina
  • Tennessee: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than South Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives mid April, 1 week later than South Carolina

Common questions

When do Scarlet Tanagers arrive in South Carolina?
Scarlet Tanagers arrive in South Carolina in the second week of April, peak in early May (4.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of July.
When do Scarlet Tanagers leave South Carolina?
Most Scarlet Tanagers have left South Carolina by the second week of July, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Scarlet Tanager in South Carolina?
The Scarlet Tanager is reported most often in early May, on about 4.9% of South Carolina checklists.
Where in South Carolina are Scarlet Tanagers seen most often?
By county, Pickens County, Oconee County, and Cherokee County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Scarlet Tanager (counties with at least 200 checklists).