WhenToBird

Larus brachyrhynchus · Laridae

When Do Short-billed Gulls Arrive in Alaska?

Adult Short-billed Gull
Photo: Алексей Ябс, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Short-billed Gulls are in Alaska all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid April, peak in early May (35% of checklists), and fall back by early August. In the quietest week (mid March) they are still on about 12% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildApr 15-21mid April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Fall back byAug 1-7early August
FewestMar 15-21mid March

Best: early May. Here all year; numbers build from mid April and fall back by early August. Peak: on about 35% of Alaska checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 14% of 3788 checklistsJan 8-14: 14% of 2852 checklistsJan 15-21: 14% of 2810 checklistsJan 22-31: 14% of 3629 checklistsFeb 1-7: 15% of 2519 checklistsFeb 8-14: 15% of 2927 checklistsFeb 15-21: 13% of 3743 checklistsFeb 22-28: 14% of 2846 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 2904 checklistsMar 8-14: 13% of 3073 checklistsMar 15-21: 13% of 3359 checklistsMar 22-31: 12% of 5855 checklistsApr 1-7: 13% of 4329 checklistsApr 8-14: 20% of 4949 checklistsApr 15-21: 29% of 7114 checklistsApr 22-30: 34% of 10916 checklistsMay 1-7: 37% of 11827 checklistsMay 8-14: 33% of 14115 checklistsMay 15-21: 32% of 12152 checklistsMay 22-31: 29% of 19919 checklistsJun 1-7: 27% of 15816 checklistsJun 8-14: 25% of 17194 checklistsJun 15-21: 23% of 15943 checklistsJun 22-30: 27% of 16192 checklistsJul 1-7: 25% of 9815 checklistsJul 8-14: 26% of 8263 checklistsJul 15-21: 29% of 7081 checklistsJul 22-31: 27% of 9434 checklistsAug 1-7: 25% of 6380 checklistsAug 8-14: 23% of 6258 checklistsAug 15-21: 20% of 6114 checklistsAug 22-31: 20% of 8189 checklistsSep 1-7: 18% of 5848 checklistsSep 8-14: 18% of 4853 checklistsSep 15-21: 20% of 4415 checklistsSep 22-30: 20% of 5086 checklistsOct 1-7: 23% of 3576 checklistsOct 8-14: 22% of 4212 checklistsOct 15-21: 21% of 3339 checklistsOct 22-31: 21% of 4169 checklistsNov 1-7: 17% of 2844 checklistsNov 8-14: 18% of 2753 checklistsNov 15-21: 17% of 2291 checklistsNov 22-30: 17% of 3066 checklistsDec 1-7: 16% of 2199 checklistsDec 8-14: 15% of 2472 checklistsDec 15-21: 14% of 3071 checklistsDec 22-31: 15% of 3442 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 Alaska 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 Alaska

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Haines BoroughBest the second week of October · 21 checklists that week, 1,690 in all61%
  2. Skagway MunicipalityBest mid December · 14 checklists that week, 2,045 in all57%
  3. Anchorage MunicipalityBest late April · 2742 checklists that week, 65,703 in all55%
  4. Kusilvak Census AreaBest late May · 50 checklists that week, 573 in all55%
  5. Dillingham Census AreaBest late June · 75 checklists that week, 1,426 in all53%
  6. Kodiak Island BoroughBest the second week of October · 194 checklists that week, 11,483 in all51%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Viapan LakeKenai Peninsula Borough, best late May · 35 checklists that week, 153 in all97%
  2. Denali Wilderness AreaDenali Borough, best mid June · 31 checklists that week, 293 in all97%
  3. Chester Creek Greenbelt (Westchester Lake)Anchorage Municipality, best the second week of June · 52 checklists that week, 2,640 in all95%

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

Best time of day

In Alaska, the Short-billed Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 pm (30% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (549) to judge1 am: too few checklists (365) to judge2 am: too few checklists (291) to judge3 am: too few checklists (624) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1241) to judge5 am: too few checklists (3532) to judge6 am: 26% of 9751 checklists7 am: 27% of 17236 checklists8 am: 25% of 24936 checklists9 am: 23% of 30139 checklists10 am: 23% of 30866 checklists11 am: 22% of 28207 checklists12 pm: 22% of 25650 checklists1 pm: 22% of 24144 checklists2 pm: 22% of 23323 checklists3 pm: 23% of 20763 checklists4 pm: 25% of 18245 checklists5 pm: 26% of 14895 checklists6 pm: 28% of 11707 checklists7 pm: 30% of 9365 checklists8 pm: 31% of 6934 checklists9 pm: too few checklists (4176) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2050) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (952) 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
January14%14%14%14%
February15%15%13%14%
March13%13%13%12%
April13%20%29%34%
May37%33%32%29%
June27%25%23%27%
July25%26%29%27%
August25%23%20%20%
September18%18%20%20%
October23%22%21%21%
November17%18%17%17%
December16%15%14%15%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives mid July, 12 weeks later than Alaska
  • Oregon: arrives early October, 22 weeks later than Alaska
  • California: arrives late October, 23 weeks earlier than Alaska

Common questions

When do Short-billed Gulls arrive in Alaska?
Short-billed Gulls are in Alaska all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid April, peak in early May (35% of checklists), and fall back by early August. In the quietest week (mid March) they are still on about 12% of checklists.
When do Short-billed Gulls leave Alaska?
Short-billed Gulls never fully leave Alaska: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early August, but some are still reported in every week, about 12% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Short-billed Gull in Alaska?
The Short-billed Gull is reported most often in early May, on about 35% of Alaska checklists.
Where in Alaska are Short-billed Gulls seen most often?
By county, Haines Borough, Skagway Municipality, and Anchorage Municipality have the highest peak reporting rates for the Short-billed Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).