WhenToBird

Melospiza melodia · Passerellidae

When Do Song Sparrows Arrive in Iowa?

Adult Song Sparrow
Photo: Bill Keim, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Song Sparrows are in Iowa all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid March, peak in early April (36% of checklists), and fall back by mid August. In the quietest week (late January) they are still on about 5.4% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 15-21mid March
PeakApr 1-7early April
Fall back byAug 15-21mid August
FewestJan 22-31late January

Best: early April. Here all year; numbers build from mid March and fall back by mid August. Peak: on about 36% of Iowa checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 6.2% of 5551 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.3% of 3498 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.1% of 3803 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.8% of 4807 checklistsFeb 1-7: 5.1% of 3613 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.9% of 4173 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.2% of 5796 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.5% of 4394 checklistsMar 1-7: 11% of 5295 checklistsMar 8-14: 21% of 5679 checklistsMar 15-21: 26% of 5418 checklistsMar 22-31: 35% of 8613 checklistsApr 1-7: 37% of 6970 checklistsApr 8-14: 36% of 7511 checklistsApr 15-21: 35% of 8321 checklistsApr 22-30: 37% of 11976 checklistsMay 1-7: 34% of 11725 checklistsMay 8-14: 30% of 12626 checklistsMay 15-21: 29% of 9372 checklistsMay 22-31: 31% of 10330 checklistsJun 1-7: 30% of 5472 checklistsJun 8-14: 31% of 4568 checklistsJun 15-21: 30% of 3870 checklistsJun 22-30: 32% of 4780 checklistsJul 1-7: 34% of 4201 checklistsJul 8-14: 33% of 3605 checklistsJul 15-21: 34% of 3621 checklistsJul 22-31: 36% of 5093 checklistsAug 1-7: 34% of 3931 checklistsAug 8-14: 33% of 3488 checklistsAug 15-21: 26% of 3802 checklistsAug 22-31: 17% of 6293 checklistsSep 1-7: 10% of 5328 checklistsSep 8-14: 9.3% of 4622 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.3% of 4367 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 6086 checklistsOct 1-7: 21% of 4708 checklistsOct 8-14: 25% of 4791 checklistsOct 15-21: 28% of 4429 checklistsOct 22-31: 25% of 5633 checklistsNov 1-7: 18% of 4090 checklistsNov 8-14: 13% of 3416 checklistsNov 15-21: 11% of 3398 checklistsNov 22-30: 8.3% of 4679 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.1% of 3442 checklistsDec 8-14: 8.0% of 3322 checklistsDec 15-21: 8.1% of 4619 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.6% of 5113 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 Iowa 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 Iowa

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mitchell CountyBest the second week of August · 12 checklists that week, 660 in all81%
  2. Howard CountyBest late June · 13 checklists that week, 334 in all78%
  3. Grundy CountyBest the second week of July · 10 checklists that week, 647 in all77%
  4. Clarke CountyBest late March · 16 checklists that week, 459 in all74%
  5. Union CountyBest early August · 12 checklists that week, 1,133 in all74%
  6. Tama CountyBest the second week of July · 10 checklists that week, 973 in all70%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cedar Lake ParkLinn County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 1,387 in all97%
  2. Ada Hayden Heritage ParkStory County, best late June · 25 checklists that week, 1,681 in all95%
  3. Sycamore WetlandsJohnson County, best early May · 22 checklists that week, 526 in all90%
  4. John Deere MarshDubuque County, best the second week of August · 28 checklists that week, 1,952 in all90%
  5. Jensen MarshMadison County, best early May · 48 checklists that week, 404 in all89%
  6. Prairie Lakes ParkBlack Hawk County, best late May · 23 checklists that week, 986 in all88%

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

Best time of day

In Iowa, the Song Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (30% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (96) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (67) to judge3 am: too few checklists (82) to judge4 am: too few checklists (201) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1888) to judge6 am: 36% of 11313 checklists7 am: 27% of 25717 checklists8 am: 26% of 29755 checklists9 am: 25% of 28897 checklists10 am: 23% of 26343 checklists11 am: 20% of 21210 checklists12 pm: 19% of 17662 checklists1 pm: 18% of 16595 checklists2 pm: 17% of 16405 checklists3 pm: 18% of 17030 checklists4 pm: 19% of 17378 checklists5 pm: 24% of 14251 checklists6 pm: 25% of 10349 checklists7 pm: 25% of 6233 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2002) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (392) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (186) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (87) 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
January6.2%5.3%5.1%5.8%
February5.1%5.9%5.2%6.5%
March11%21%26%35%
April37%36%35%37%
May34%30%29%31%
June30%31%30%32%
July34%33%34%36%
August34%33%26%17%
September10%9.3%7.3%13%
October21%25%28%25%
November18%13%11%8.3%
December7.1%8.0%8.1%6.6%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: arrives mid October, 20 weeks earlier than Iowa
  • Wisconsin: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Iowa
  • Minnesota: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Iowa
  • Illinois: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Iowa

Common questions

When do Song Sparrows arrive in Iowa?
Song Sparrows are in Iowa all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid March, peak in early April (36% of checklists), and fall back by mid August. In the quietest week (late January) they are still on about 5.4% of checklists.
When do Song Sparrows leave Iowa?
Song Sparrows never fully leave Iowa: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid August, but some are still reported in every week, about 5.4% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Song Sparrow in Iowa?
The Song Sparrow is reported most often in early April, on about 36% of Iowa checklists.
Where in Iowa are Song Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Mitchell County, Howard County, and Grundy County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Song Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).