WhenToBird

Piranga rubra · Cardinalidae

When Do Summer Tanagers Arrive in North Carolina?

Adult male Summer Tanager
Photo: tcantrell52, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Summer Tanagers reach North Carolina in the second week of April, are common by mid April, peak in the second week of May (17% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 8-14the second week of April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakMay 8-14the second week of May
Most gone bySep 22-30late September

Best: the second week of May. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by late September. Peak: on about 17% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.4% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.7% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 14% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 19% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 13% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 12% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 12% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 12% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 9.4% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.3% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.2% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 5.7% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.1% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.6% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 10% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.7% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.2% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.9% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% 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 early May · 64 checklists that week, 2,224 in all67%
  2. Bladen CountyBest early August · 46 checklists that week, 3,758 in all65%
  3. Gates CountyBest the second week of May · 114 checklists that week, 4,066 in all63%
  4. Granville CountyBest early May · 193 checklists that week, 4,892 in all61%
  5. Chatham CountyBest the second week of May · 954 checklists that week, 33,471 in all54%
  6. Franklin CountyBest the second week of May · 224 checklists that week, 6,271 in all54%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Triangle Land Conservancy - Horton Grove PreserveDurham County, best early May · 40 checklists that week, 500 in all93%
  2. Mecklenburg County Open Space - Cowan's Ford Wildlife RefugeMecklenburg County, best early May · 103 checklists that week, 1,735 in all87%
  3. City of Raleigh Open Space - Horseshoe ParkWake County, best the second week of May · 22 checklists that week, 478 in all86%
  4. Haw River State ParkGuilford County, best the second week of May · 20 checklists that week, 593 in all85%
  5. Jordan Game LandChatham County, best the second week of June · 29 checklists that week, 1,161 in all84%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Summer Tanager is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (9.7% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%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: 14% of 50335 checklists7 am: 8.3% of 150152 checklists8 am: 6.4% of 182902 checklists9 am: 5.2% of 158933 checklists10 am: 4.5% of 128398 checklists11 am: 3.8% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 3.4% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 3.2% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 3.1% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 3.0% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 3.4% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 5.0% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 6.5% 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0.1%1.4%6.7%14%
May19%16%15%13%
June13%12%12%12%
July12%11%9.4%8.3%
August6.2%5.7%6.1%7.6%
September11%11%10%6.7%
October3.2%0.9%0.2%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives early April, 1 week earlier than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives mid April, 1 week later than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives late April, 2 weeks later than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives mid August, 17 weeks later than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Summer Tanagers arrive in North Carolina?
Summer Tanagers reach North Carolina in the second week of April, are common by mid April, peak in the second week of May (17% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.
When do Summer Tanagers leave North Carolina?
Most Summer Tanagers have left North Carolina by late September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of October.
When is the best time to see a Summer Tanager in North Carolina?
The Summer Tanager is reported most often in the second week of May, on about 17% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Summer Tanagers seen most often?
By county, Anson County, Bladen County, and Gates County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Summer Tanager (counties with at least 200 checklists).