WhenToBird

Melanitta perspicillata · Anatidae

When Do Surf Scoters Arrive in New York?

Adult male Surf Scoter
Photo: Elliott Gordon, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Surf Scoters are winter birds in New York: they arrive in the second week of October, peak in early November (2.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 8-14the second week of October
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakNov 1-7early November
Most gone byMar 1-7early March

Best: early November. First arrivals the second week of October; most are gone by early March. Peak: on about 2.2% of New York checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 1.9% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.0% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.8% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.9% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.8% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.7% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.3% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.3% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.7% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.6% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.5% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.4% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.3% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.2% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.2% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.3% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.5% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.2% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.6% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.0% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.3% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.3% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.8% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.3% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.6% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.8% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.4% of 62470 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 New York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bronx CountyBest early February · 408 checklists that week, 24,489 in all15%
  2. Nassau CountyBest mid November · 1721 checklists that week, 95,019 in all10%
  3. Suffolk CountyBest mid December · 4187 checklists that week, 208,865 in all9.8%
  4. Wayne CountyBest early November · 503 checklists that week, 37,738 in all7.0%
  5. Richmond CountyBest early January · 1631 checklists that week, 55,926 in all5.6%
  6. Oswego CountyBest late October · 807 checklists that week, 39,208 in all5.2%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Montauk PointSuffolk County, best the second week of February · 71 checklists that week, 1,540 in all80%
  2. RotaryErie County, best mid October · 43 checklists that week, 753 in all76%
  3. Culloden PointSuffolk County, best early January · 22 checklists that week, 300 in all74%
  4. Camp Hero State ParkSuffolk County, best the second week of February · 22 checklists that week, 447 in all70%
  5. Coney Island Beach & Boardwalk (Coney Island Creek)Kings County, best mid March · 21 checklists that week, 650 in all70%
  6. Coney Island Beach & BoardwalkKings County, best the second week of March · 44 checklists that week, 1,069 in all65%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Surf Scoter is most often listed on checklists started between 10 am and 12 pm (1.0% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 0.6% of 124869 checklists7 am: 0.9% of 298506 checklists8 am: 0.8% of 337334 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 307787 checklists10 am: 1.0% of 270801 checklists11 am: 1.0% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 0.9% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 1.0% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 0.9% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 0.6% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 0.3% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January1.9%2.0%1.8%1.9%
February1.8%1.7%1.3%1.3%
March0.9%0.7%0.6%0.5%
April0.4%0.3%0.3%0.3%
May0.2%0.2%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.2%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.3%
October0.5%1.2%1.6%2.0%
November2.3%2.3%1.8%2.3%
December1.8%1.6%1.8%2.4%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives late October, 2 weeks later than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives early October, 1 week earlier than New York
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of October, in the same week than New York
  • Delaware: arrives the second week of October, in the same week than New York

Common questions

When do Surf Scoters arrive in New York?
Surf Scoters are winter birds in New York: they arrive in the second week of October, peak in early November (2.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early March.
When do Surf Scoters leave New York?
Most Surf Scoters have left New York by early March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Surf Scoter in New York?
The Surf Scoter is reported most often in early November, on about 2.2% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Surf Scoters seen most often?
By county, Bronx County, Nassau County, and Suffolk County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Surf Scoter (counties with at least 200 checklists).