WhenToBird

Cyanocitta stelleri · Corvidae

When Do Steller's Jays Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Steller's Jay
Photo: Steven Smethurst, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

The Steller's Jay is in Oregon all year. It turns up on about 31% of checklists at its peak (early October) and on 17% in its quietest week (mid January).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekOct 1-7early October
Quietest weekJan 15-21mid January

Best: early October. Here all year. Peak: on about 31% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 18% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 17% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 17% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 17% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 18% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 20% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 21% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 21% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 23% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 23% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 24% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 25% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 25% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 24% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 25% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 25% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 23% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 22% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 21% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 20% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 20% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 21% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 21% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 22% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 22% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 21% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 22% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 22% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 23% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 23% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 24% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 27% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 29% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 30% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 30% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 31% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 32% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 31% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 28% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 25% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 23% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 22% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 20% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 21% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 20% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 20% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 21% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 20% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Curry CountyBest early October · 318 checklists that week, 12,513 in all54%
  2. Columbia CountyBest mid April · 560 checklists that week, 27,750 in all47%
  3. Clackamas CountyBest mid September · 891 checklists that week, 50,929 in all46%
  4. Yamhill CountyBest mid September · 151 checklists that week, 11,537 in all44%
  5. Douglas CountyBest the second week of October · 351 checklists that week, 17,976 in all42%
  6. Tillamook CountyBest late September · 1152 checklists that week, 45,809 in all40%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mount Pisgah ParkLane County, best the second week of October · 23 checklists that week, 1,087 in all98%
  2. Arizona Beach State Recreation SiteCurry County, best late September · 22 checklists that week, 279 in all96%
  3. Graham Oaks Nature ParkClackamas County, best late October · 21 checklists that week, 678 in all96%
  4. Hileman ParkLane County, best the second week of December · 21 checklists that week, 353 in all96%
  5. Trask RiverTillamook County, best early October · 28 checklists that week, 140 in all96%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Steller's Jay is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (32% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 31% of 50677 checklists7 am: 32% of 125347 checklists8 am: 32% of 163668 checklists9 am: 29% of 160351 checklists10 am: 26% of 148940 checklists11 am: 23% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 22% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 20% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 17% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 15% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 13% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 14% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 12% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 6.4% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January18%17%17%17%
February18%20%21%21%
March23%23%24%25%
April25%24%25%25%
May23%22%21%20%
June20%21%21%22%
July22%21%22%22%
August23%23%24%27%
September29%30%30%31%
October32%31%28%25%
November23%22%20%21%
December20%20%21%20%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: year-round, peaks late September
  • Idaho: all year, most in fall, peaks mid October
  • Nevada: year-round, peaks early July
  • California: all year, most in summer, peaks mid June

Common questions

When do Steller's Jays arrive in Oregon?
The Steller's Jay is in Oregon all year. It turns up on about 31% of checklists at its peak (early October) and on 17% in its quietest week (mid January).
When do Steller's Jays leave Oregon?
The Steller's Jay does not leave Oregon: it is reported all year, from 17% of checklists in mid January to 31% in early October.
When is the best time to see a Steller's Jay in Oregon?
The Steller's Jay is reported most often in early October, on about 31% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Steller's Jays seen most often?
By county, Curry County, Columbia County, and Clackamas County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Steller's Jay (counties with at least 200 checklists).