WhenToBird

Pipilo maculatus · Passerellidae

When Do Spotted Towhees Arrive in Nebraska?

Adult male Spotted Towhee
Photo: Tser, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Spotted Towhees are winter birds in Nebraska: the first arrive in the second week of April, they are common by mid April, peak in early October (8.7% of checklists), and most are gone by late October.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 8-14the second week of April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byOct 22-31late October

Best: early October. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by late October. Peak: on about 8.7% of Nebraska checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 1.1% of 4210 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.7% of 2891 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.9% of 2685 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.5% of 3834 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.8% of 2803 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.8% of 3134 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.8% of 4508 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.4% of 3238 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 3862 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 4894 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 5862 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 8598 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.4% of 5530 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.0% of 5528 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.1% of 6091 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.2% of 8661 checklistsMay 1-7: 7.1% of 9842 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.9% of 10044 checklistsMay 15-21: 6.2% of 8863 checklistsMay 22-31: 7.9% of 10207 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.3% of 4922 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.9% of 4054 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.9% of 3680 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.7% of 4349 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.6% of 3277 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.2% of 2803 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.3% of 2842 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.7% of 3920 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.4% of 2981 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.8% of 2819 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.9% of 3179 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.9% of 4599 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.1% of 3958 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.2% of 3460 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.1% of 3435 checklistsSep 22-30: 7.7% of 4975 checklistsOct 1-7: 9.2% of 3611 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.6% of 3605 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.2% of 3474 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.6% of 4352 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.3% of 3119 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.7% of 2887 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.8% of 2568 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.0% of 3506 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.6% of 2453 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.7% of 2756 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.2% of 3760 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.2% of 3746 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 Nebraska 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 Nebraska

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Brown CountyBest mid July · 12 checklists that week, 660 in all48%
  2. Thomas CountyBest late June · 19 checklists that week, 610 in all47%
  3. Scotts Bluff CountyBest late June · 226 checklists that week, 7,688 in all46%
  4. Keya Paha CountyBest late June · 26 checklists that week, 455 in all43%
  5. Banner CountyBest early September · 25 checklists that week, 689 in all38%
  6. Dawes CountyBest mid June · 217 checklists that week, 2,926 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Wildcat Hills State Recreation AreaScotts Bluff County, best late August · 30 checklists that week, 828 in all94%
  2. Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area (east)Scotts Bluff County, best the second week of June · 21 checklists that week, 320 in all88%
  3. Gilbert-baker Wildlife Management AreaSioux County, best late May · 23 checklists that week, 182 in all78%
  4. Scotts Bluff National MonumentScotts Bluff County, best late June · 32 checklists that week, 507 in all69%

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

Best time of day

In Nebraska, the Spotted Towhee is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (6.3% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (60) to judge1 am: too few checklists (70) to judge2 am: too few checklists (74) to judge3 am: too few checklists (97) to judge4 am: too few checklists (318) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1382) to judge6 am: 8.0% of 6945 checklists7 am: 5.7% of 19066 checklists8 am: 4.4% of 24661 checklists9 am: 4.0% of 23438 checklists10 am: 3.5% of 20424 checklists11 am: 3.3% of 16727 checklists12 pm: 3.0% of 14774 checklists1 pm: 3.2% of 14443 checklists2 pm: 2.9% of 14830 checklists3 pm: 2.9% of 14445 checklists4 pm: 2.9% of 13353 checklists5 pm: 3.0% of 10506 checklists6 pm: 3.1% of 9208 checklists7 pm: 3.1% of 6334 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2406) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (531) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (201) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (82) 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
January1.1%0.7%0.9%0.5%
February0.8%0.8%0.8%0.4%
March0.4%0.4%0.4%0.4%
April0.4%1.0%2.1%5.2%
May7.1%5.9%6.2%7.9%
June8.3%6.9%8.9%7.7%
July6.6%6.2%4.3%3.7%
August3.4%2.8%2.9%3.9%
September5.1%4.2%5.1%7.7%
October9.2%9.6%6.2%2.6%
November1.3%0.7%0.8%1.0%
December0.6%1.7%1.2%1.2%

Neighboring states

  • Kansas: arrives mid September, 21 weeks later than Nebraska
  • South Dakota: arrives mid April, 1 week later than Nebraska
  • Oklahoma: arrives early October, 23 weeks later than Nebraska
  • Colorado: year-round, peaks the second week of May

Common questions

When do Spotted Towhees arrive in Nebraska?
Spotted Towhees are winter birds in Nebraska: the first arrive in the second week of April, they are common by mid April, peak in early October (8.7% of checklists), and most are gone by late October.
When do Spotted Towhees leave Nebraska?
Most Spotted Towhees have left Nebraska by late October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early November.
When is the best time to see a Spotted Towhee in Nebraska?
The Spotted Towhee is reported most often in early October, on about 8.7% of Nebraska checklists.
Where in Nebraska are Spotted Towhees seen most often?
By county, Brown County, Thomas County, and Scotts Bluff County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Spotted Towhee (counties with at least 200 checklists).