WhenToBird

Melospiza melodia · Passerellidae

When Do Song Sparrows Arrive in North Carolina?

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

Song Sparrows are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid October, peak in the second week of November (42% of checklists), and fall back by early April. In the quietest week (early September) they are still on about 12% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 15-21mid October
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Fall back byApr 1-7early April
FewestSep 1-7early September

Best: the second week of November. Here all year; numbers build from mid October and fall back by early April. Peak: on about 42% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 36% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 36% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 35% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 36% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 35% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 34% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 31% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 39% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 39% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 39% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 37% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 32% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 27% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 24% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 23% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 23% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 22% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 22% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 21% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 18% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 18% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 18% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 17% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 18% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 19% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 19% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 19% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 18% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 17% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 15% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 13% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 12% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 16% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 21% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 29% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 38% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 43% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 43% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 42% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 39% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 39% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 39% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 41% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 37% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Anson CountyBest the second week of November · 29 checklists that week, 2,224 in all82%
  2. Gates CountyBest mid November · 63 checklists that week, 4,066 in all78%
  3. Alleghany CountyBest the second week of March · 13 checklists that week, 2,311 in all76%
  4. Yadkin CountyBest early November · 22 checklists that week, 1,641 in all75%
  5. Watauga CountyBest late October · 395 checklists that week, 24,164 in all75%
  6. Bladen CountyBest early December · 51 checklists that week, 3,758 in all73%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. North BrevardTransylvania County, best late April · 20 checklists that week, 346 in all100%
  2. Governors IslandSwain County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 571 in all100%
  3. Watauga County Open SpaceWatauga County, best mid May · 30 checklists that week, 713 in all100%
  4. Clawson-Burnley ParkWatauga County, best the second week of October · 36 checklists that week, 811 in all100%
  5. Rosasco Lake UpperWatauga County, best early November · 33 checklists that week, 1,829 in all100%
  6. Trout Lake (northeast)Watauga County, best late May · 23 checklists that week, 322 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Song Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (32% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 24% of 50335 checklists7 am: 30% of 150152 checklists8 am: 33% of 182902 checklists9 am: 32% of 158933 checklists10 am: 28% of 128398 checklists11 am: 26% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 25% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 25% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 24% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 23% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 22% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 20% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 17% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January36%36%35%36%
February35%34%31%39%
March39%39%37%32%
April27%24%23%23%
May22%22%21%18%
June18%18%17%18%
July19%19%19%18%
August17%15%13%12%
September11%12%12%14%
October16%21%29%38%
November43%43%42%39%
December39%39%41%37%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives the second week of October, 1 week earlier than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives mid October, in the same week than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: year-round, peaks mid March
  • District of Columbia: arrives the second week of October, 1 week earlier than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Song Sparrows arrive in North Carolina?
Song Sparrows are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid October, peak in the second week of November (42% of checklists), and fall back by early April. In the quietest week (early September) they are still on about 12% of checklists.
When do Song Sparrows leave North Carolina?
Song Sparrows never fully leave North Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early April, but some are still reported in every week, about 12% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Song Sparrow in North Carolina?
The Song Sparrow is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 42% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Song Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Anson County, Gates County, and Alleghany County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Song Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).