WhenToBird

Anser caerulescens · Anatidae

When Do Snow Geese Arrive in New York?

Adult Snow Goose
Photo: sprcrkwild, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Snow Geese are winter birds in New York: they arrive in the second week of November, peak in the second week of March (4.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.

When to look

First arrivalsNov 8-14the second week of November
Common byNov 8-14the second week of November
PeakMar 8-14the second week of March
Most gone byApr 1-7early April

Best: the second week of March. First arrivals the second week of November; most are gone by early April. Peak: on about 4.2% of New York checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junrare
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 2.1% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.9% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.3% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.9% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.5% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.2% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.5% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.2% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.0% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.8% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.8% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.1% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.8% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.6% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.2% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.3% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.2% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.2% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.2% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.2% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.3% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.6% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.6% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.9% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.1% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.2% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.3% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.4% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.8% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.6% of 62470 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 New York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Seneca CountyBest the second week of March · 1100 checklists that week, 47,387 in all39%
  2. Clinton CountyBest late November · 101 checklists that week, 8,764 in all33%
  3. Cayuga CountyBest the second week of March · 493 checklists that week, 20,184 in all23%
  4. Wayne CountyBest early March · 750 checklists that week, 37,738 in all20%
  5. Franklin CountyBest early November · 274 checklists that week, 20,717 in all17%
  6. Queens CountyBest early March · 1381 checklists that week, 76,201 in all13%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Village of Malone LandFranklin County, best late October · 46 checklists that week, 410 in all95%
  2. West PondQueens County, best late February · 78 checklists that week, 5,856 in all90%
  3. West Pond (Black Bank Marsh)Queens County, best early March · 80 checklists that week, 4,651 in all86%
  4. Town of Orchard Park Land (Green Lake)Erie County, best the second week of January · 20 checklists that week, 101 in all70%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Snow Goose is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (1.3% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 0.5% of 124869 checklists7 am: 0.7% of 298506 checklists8 am: 0.8% of 337334 checklists9 am: 1.0% of 307787 checklists10 am: 1.1% of 270801 checklists11 am: 1.2% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 1.3% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 1.3% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 1.3% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 1.3% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 1.2% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 0.9% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January2.1%1.9%2.3%1.9%
February1.5%1.2%1.5%3.2%
March4.0%4.8%3.8%2.1%
April0.8%0.6%0.4%0.3%
May0.3%0.2%0.2%0.2%
June0.2%0.3%0.2%0.1%
July0.1%0.2%0.1%0.1%
August0.2%0.2%0.1%0.2%
September0.2%0.1%0.2%0.3%
October0.6%0.6%0.6%0.8%
November0.9%1.1%1.2%1.3%
December1.8%2.4%1.8%1.6%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives mid October, 3 weeks earlier than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives the second week of November, in the same week than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives mid November, 1 week later than New York
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of October, 4 weeks earlier than New York

Common questions

When do Snow Geese arrive in New York?
Snow Geese are winter birds in New York: they arrive in the second week of November, peak in the second week of March (4.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.
When do Snow Geese leave New York?
Most Snow Geese have left New York by early April, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Snow Goose in New York?
The Snow Goose is reported most often in the second week of March, on about 4.2% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Snow Geese seen most often?
By county, Seneca County, Clinton County, and Cayuga County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Snow Goose (counties with at least 200 checklists).