WhenToBird

Charadrius semipalmatus · Charadriidae

When Do Semipalmated Plovers Arrive in Maine?

Adult Semipalmated Plover
Photo: Hungry-Sarracenia Photo, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Semipalmated Plovers reach Maine in the second week of July, are common by late July, peak in late August (15% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 8-14the second week of July
Common byJul 22-31late July
PeakAug 22-31late August
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: late August. First arrivals the second week of July; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 15% of Maine checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junrare
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 0% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 0% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.2% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.6% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.7% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.8% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.9% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.3% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.7% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.1% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 13% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 15% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 13% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 11% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 8.3% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 5.6% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.1% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.2% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.7% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.3% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.2% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. York CountyBest late August · 2683 checklists that week, 101,844 in all39%
  2. Sagadahoc CountyBest early September · 461 checklists that week, 21,736 in all23%
  3. Washington CountyBest late August · 1435 checklists that week, 35,967 in all21%
  4. Cumberland CountyBest the second week of August · 2716 checklists that week, 169,501 in all20%
  5. Knox CountyBest late August · 1175 checklists that week, 34,453 in all17%
  6. Waldo CountyBest early September · 648 checklists that week, 33,433 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Back BayYork County, best mid August · 153 checklists that week, 1,607 in all93%
  2. Great Pond (Libbyshears)York County, best mid August · 33 checklists that week, 1,215 in all87%
  3. Fort PointCumberland County, best late August · 28 checklists that week, 2,286 in all86%
  4. Timber PointYork County, best mid August · 70 checklists that week, 3,561 in all86%
  5. Raccoon CoveHancock County, best late August · 24 checklists that week, 352 in all85%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Semipalmated Plover is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (4.0% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 3.1% of 19895 checklists6 am: 3.9% of 54578 checklists7 am: 3.2% of 92775 checklists8 am: 2.9% of 86962 checklists9 am: 2.9% of 78989 checklists10 am: 2.7% of 70954 checklists11 am: 2.5% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 2.3% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 2.4% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 2.6% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 2.9% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 3.6% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 4.3% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 3.7% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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%0%
May0.2%0.6%1.7%1.8%
June0.9%0.3%0.1%0.1%
July0.2%0.7%2.7%7.1%
August12%13%15%15%
September15%13%11%8.3%
October5.6%4.1%3.2%2.7%
November1.3%0.6%0.2%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • New Hampshire: arrives mid July, 1 week later than Maine
  • Massachusetts: arrives the second week of July, in the same week than Maine
  • Vermont: arrives late July, 2 weeks later than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives the second week of May, 8 weeks earlier than Maine

Common questions

When do Semipalmated Plovers arrive in Maine?
Semipalmated Plovers reach Maine in the second week of July, are common by late July, peak in late August (15% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Semipalmated Plovers leave Maine?
Most Semipalmated Plovers have left Maine by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early November.
When is the best time to see a Semipalmated Plover in Maine?
The Semipalmated Plover is reported most often in late August, on about 15% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Semipalmated Plovers seen most often?
By county, York County, Sagadahoc County, and Washington County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Semipalmated Plover (counties with at least 200 checklists).