WhenToBird

Melanitta perspicillata · Anatidae

When Do Surf Scoters Arrive in Rhode Island?

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

Surf Scoters are winter birds in Rhode Island: the first arrive in early October, they are common by late October, peak in early February (7.8% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 1-7early October
Common byOct 22-31late October
PeakFeb 1-7early February
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: early February. First arrivals early October; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 7.8% of Rhode Island checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Seprare
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 6.8% of 5678 checklistsJan 8-14: 7.7% of 4004 checklistsJan 15-21: 6.8% of 3691 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.9% of 4738 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.3% of 3178 checklistsFeb 8-14: 8.2% of 3262 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.2% of 4286 checklistsFeb 22-28: 8.9% of 3449 checklistsMar 1-7: 6.0% of 3014 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.4% of 3259 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.7% of 3320 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.9% of 4692 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.6% of 3280 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.8% of 3872 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.7% of 4037 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 5595 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.6% of 5699 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.4% of 6089 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 4937 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.6% of 5445 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 3031 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 2793 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.4% of 2736 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.4% of 3318 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.3% of 2629 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.5% of 2561 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.5% of 2580 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.7% of 3654 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 2629 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 2912 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 2850 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 4007 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.5% of 2893 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.3% of 2850 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.4% of 2770 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.7% of 3888 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.2% of 3174 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.3% of 3278 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.0% of 3008 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.7% of 3678 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.7% of 3270 checklistsNov 8-14: 7.2% of 3405 checklistsNov 15-21: 6.9% of 2907 checklistsNov 22-30: 6.7% of 3607 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.6% of 2415 checklistsDec 8-14: 7.9% of 2345 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.9% of 2836 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.0% of 4826 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 Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Newport CountyBest mid February · 859 checklists that week, 33,574 in all25%
  2. Washington CountyBest late November · 1272 checklists that week, 65,038 in all9.0%
  3. Kent CountyBest early December · 244 checklists that week, 16,966 in all1.0%
  4. Bristol CountyBest early November · 312 checklists that week, 15,899 in all0.8%
  5. Providence CountyBest late October · 930 checklists that week, 40,898 in all0.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Beavertail PointNewport County, best mid February · 94 checklists that week, 2,620 in all76%
  2. Watch Hill PointWashington County, best mid October · 23 checklists that week, 510 in all72%
  3. Napatree PointWashington County, best late November · 43 checklists that week, 3,109 in all60%
  4. Money PondWashington County, best the second week of February · 24 checklists that week, 868 in all55%
  5. Gardiner PondNewport County, best mid January · 48 checklists that week, 2,688 in all45%

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

Best time of day

In Rhode Island, the Surf Scoter is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (4.0% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (42) to judge1 am: too few checklists (58) to judge2 am: too few checklists (45) to judge3 am: too few checklists (69) to judge4 am: too few checklists (319) to judge5 am: too few checklists (3170) to judge6 am: 4.4% of 10493 checklists7 am: 3.7% of 17631 checklists8 am: 3.4% of 18834 checklists9 am: 3.8% of 17725 checklists10 am: 3.5% of 16696 checklists11 am: 4.0% of 14799 checklists12 pm: 4.0% of 12580 checklists1 pm: 3.9% of 12779 checklists2 pm: 3.9% of 12302 checklists3 pm: 3.1% of 11884 checklists4 pm: 1.6% of 9762 checklists5 pm: 0.8% of 6442 checklists6 pm: 0.7% of 3947 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (2119) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (452) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (105) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (69) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (53) 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
January6.8%7.7%6.8%7.9%
February7.3%8.2%6.2%8.9%
March6.0%5.4%3.7%2.9%
April2.6%1.8%1.7%0.8%
May0.6%0.4%0.6%0.6%
June0.4%0.5%0.4%0.4%
July0.3%0.5%0.5%0.7%
August0.4%0.3%0.5%0.6%
September0.5%0.3%0.4%0.7%
October1.2%2.3%3.0%4.7%
November4.7%7.2%6.9%6.7%
December7.6%7.9%6.9%8.0%

Neighboring states

  • Massachusetts: arrives late September, 1 week earlier than Rhode Island
  • Connecticut: arrives late October, 3 weeks later than Rhode Island
  • New Hampshire: arrives the second week of October, 1 week later than Rhode Island
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of October, 1 week later than Rhode Island

Common questions

When do Surf Scoters arrive in Rhode Island?
Surf Scoters are winter birds in Rhode Island: the first arrive in early October, they are common by late October, peak in early February (7.8% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Surf Scoters leave Rhode Island?
Most Surf Scoters have left Rhode Island by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid April.
When is the best time to see a Surf Scoter in Rhode Island?
The Surf Scoter is reported most often in early February, on about 7.8% of Rhode Island checklists.
Where in Rhode Island are Surf Scoters seen most often?
By county, Newport County, Washington County, and Kent County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Surf Scoter (counties with at least 200 checklists).