WhenToBird

Bubo scandiacus · Strigidae

When Do Snowy Owls Arrive in Wisconsin?

Adult female Snowy Owl
Photo: Andrew Bazdyrev, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Snowy Owls are winter birds in Wisconsin: they arrive in mid November, peak in the second week of January (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid February.

When to look

First arrivalsNov 15-21mid November
Common byNov 15-21mid November
PeakJan 8-14the second week of January
Most gone byFeb 15-21mid February

Best: the second week of January. First arrivals mid November; most are gone by mid February. Peak: on about 1.5% of Wisconsin checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  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. Octnot usually seen
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 1.5% of 27925 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.4% of 18337 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.7% of 17370 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.3% of 23777 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.9% of 16656 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.8% of 18286 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.6% of 24739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.6% of 20113 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.3% of 24024 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.2% of 26722 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 27238 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 40171 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 34961 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 39128 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 38887 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 57231 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 55115 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 63098 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 49821 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 56796 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 33621 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 31282 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 30186 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 35128 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 27088 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 23293 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 20933 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 27595 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 19147 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 18286 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 19195 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 28229 checklistsSep 1-7: 0% of 22408 checklistsSep 8-14: 0% of 20857 checklistsSep 15-21: 0% of 20707 checklistsSep 22-30: 0% of 26469 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 21069 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 21011 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 20006 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 26362 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 18928 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.3% of 17052 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.7% of 16291 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.4% of 20564 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.4% of 15354 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.0% of 16294 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.9% of 21430 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.3% of 26314 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 Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Green CountyBest early January · 69 checklists that week, 4,387 in all31%
  2. Oconto CountyBest early December · 142 checklists that week, 8,609 in all28%
  3. Douglas CountyBest late January · 287 checklists that week, 14,015 in all25%
  4. Dunn CountyBest late January · 119 checklists that week, 8,247 in all6.8%
  5. Kewaunee CountyBest late January · 157 checklists that week, 9,747 in all6.5%
  6. Shawano CountyBest early February · 24 checklists that week, 3,900 in all6.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Capital City TrailDane County, best mid January · 23 checklists that week, 135 in all87%
  2. Oconto RiverOconto County, best early December · 23 checklists that week, 405 in all70%
  3. Deland Park (Sheboygan River)Sheboygan County, best late November · 23 checklists that week, 443 in all41%

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

Best time of day

In Wisconsin, the Snowy Owl is most often listed on checklists started between 3 and 5 pm (0.7% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (993) to judge1 am: too few checklists (844) to judge2 am: too few checklists (839) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1488) to judge4 am: too few checklists (5344) to judge5 am: 0.1% of 27016 checklists6 am: 0.1% of 83973 checklists7 am: 0.1% of 160717 checklists8 am: 0.2% of 160531 checklists9 am: 0.2% of 136968 checklists10 am: 0.3% of 119110 checklists11 am: 0.3% of 99116 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 85078 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 80688 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 79140 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 78599 checklists4 pm: 0.7% of 69767 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 53229 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 38769 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24396) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (10155) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4990) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2463) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1281) 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
January1.5%1.4%1.7%1.3%
February0.9%0.8%0.6%0.6%
March0.3%0.2%0.1%0.1%
April0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0%0%0%0%
July0%0.1%0%0%
August0%0%0.1%0%
September0%0%0%0%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.3%0.7%1.4%
December1.4%1.0%0.9%1.3%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: arrives the second week of November, 1 week earlier than Wisconsin
  • Michigan: arrives late November, 1 week later than Wisconsin
  • Minnesota: arrives early December, 2 weeks later than Wisconsin
  • Ohio: arrives mid November, in the same week than Wisconsin

Common questions

When do Snowy Owls arrive in Wisconsin?
Snowy Owls are winter birds in Wisconsin: they arrive in mid November, peak in the second week of January (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid February.
When do Snowy Owls leave Wisconsin?
Most Snowy Owls have left Wisconsin by mid February, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Snowy Owl in Wisconsin?
The Snowy Owl is reported most often in the second week of January, on about 1.5% of Wisconsin checklists.
Where in Wisconsin are Snowy Owls seen most often?
By county, Green County, Oconto County, and Douglas County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Snowy Owl (counties with at least 200 checklists).