WhenToBird

Plectrophenax nivalis · Calcariidae

When Do Snow Buntings Arrive in Maine?

Adult male Snow Bunting
Photo: William Stephens, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Snow Buntings are winter birds in Maine: they arrive in late October, peak in the second week of November (4.8% of checklists), and most are gone by early March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 22-31late October
Common byOct 22-31late October
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Most gone byMar 1-7early March

Best: the second week of November. First arrivals late October; most are gone by early March. Peak: on about 4.8% of Maine checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprrare
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.9% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.1% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.3% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.5% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.3% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.3% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.0% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.8% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.6% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.6% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.2% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 0% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 0% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 0% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 0% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 0% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 0% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 0% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 0% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.6% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.6% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.3% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.4% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.8% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.1% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.8% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.5% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.9% 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Aroostook CountyBest the second week of February · 122 checklists that week, 16,817 in all12%
  2. Piscataquis CountyBest late January · 145 checklists that week, 14,837 in all10%
  3. York CountyBest the second week of November · 1535 checklists that week, 101,844 in all8.0%
  4. Sagadahoc CountyBest the second week of November · 236 checklists that week, 21,736 in all5.9%
  5. Knox CountyBest the second week of November · 424 checklists that week, 34,453 in all5.7%
  6. Washington CountyBest the second week of November · 241 checklists that week, 35,967 in all5.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Seapoint BeachYork County, best mid November · 42 checklists that week, 658 in all38%
  2. Mount AgamenticusYork County, best the second week of November · 22 checklists that week, 1,103 in all35%
  3. Popham Beach State ParkSagadahoc County, best mid December · 21 checklists that week, 749 in all33%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Snow Bunting is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (0.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%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: 0.1% of 19895 checklists6 am: 0.6% of 54578 checklists7 am: 0.5% of 92775 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 86962 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 78989 checklists10 am: 0.7% of 70954 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 0.1% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 0.1% 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
January0.9%1.1%1.1%1.3%
February1.5%1.3%1.3%1.0%
March0.8%0.6%0.6%0.4%
April0.1%0.2%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0%0%0%
June0%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0%0%0%
September0%0%0%0%
October0%0.1%0.1%1.6%
November4.6%5.3%4.4%2.8%
December2.1%1.8%1.5%0.9%

Neighboring states

  • New Hampshire: arrives late October, in the same week than Maine
  • Massachusetts: arrives late October, in the same week than Maine
  • Vermont: arrives late October, in the same week than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives late October, in the same week than Maine

Common questions

When do Snow Buntings arrive in Maine?
Snow Buntings are winter birds in Maine: they arrive in late October, peak in the second week of November (4.8% of checklists), and most are gone by early March.
When do Snow Buntings leave Maine?
Most Snow Buntings have left Maine by early March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Snow Bunting in Maine?
The Snow Bunting is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 4.8% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Snow Buntings seen most often?
By county, Aroostook County, Piscataquis County, and York County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Snow Bunting (counties with at least 200 checklists).