WhenToBird

Buteo swainsoni · Accipitridae

When Do Swainson's Hawks Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Swainson's Hawk
Photo: Brooke J., CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Swainson's Hawks arrive in Oregon in the second week of April, peak in mid May (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.

When to look

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

Best: mid May. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by the second week of September. Peak: on about 1.5% of Oregon checklists.

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

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.3% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.4% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.4% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.4% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.5% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.6% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.3% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.0% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.9% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.8% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.6% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.9% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.9% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.9% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.0% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.0% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.8% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.6% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.5% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% 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. Union CountyBest the second week of May · 1205 checklists that week, 33,301 in all18%
  2. Morrow CountyBest mid April · 139 checklists that week, 3,484 in all14%
  3. Baker CountyBest early May · 136 checklists that week, 6,705 in all13%
  4. Malheur CountyBest early May · 91 checklists that week, 4,699 in all12%
  5. Lake CountyBest early August · 284 checklists that week, 13,301 in all12%
  6. Umatilla CountyBest mid April · 398 checklists that week, 17,651 in all9.2%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hot Lake ReservoirUnion County, best late May · 36 checklists that week, 495 in all55%
  2. Pueblo Foothills Area of Critical Environmental ConcernHarney County, best late May · 61 checklists that week, 182 in all54%
  3. Christmas Valley LakeLake County, best mid July · 35 checklists that week, 612 in all52%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Swainson's Hawk is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (0.7% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%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: 0.7% of 50677 checklists7 am: 0.5% of 125347 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 163668 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 160351 checklists10 am: 0.6% of 148940 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 0.5% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 0.6% 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0%0%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0.2%0.8%1.3%1.4%
May1.4%1.4%1.5%1.6%
June1.3%1.0%0.9%0.8%
July0.8%0.6%0.9%0.9%
August0.9%1.0%1.1%1.0%
September0.8%0.6%0.5%0.2%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives early April, 1 week earlier than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives early April, 1 week earlier than Oregon
  • California: arrives the second week of March, 4 weeks earlier than Oregon

Common questions

When do Swainson's Hawks arrive in Oregon?
Swainson's Hawks arrive in Oregon in the second week of April, peak in mid May (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.
When do Swainson's Hawks leave Oregon?
Most Swainson's Hawks have left Oregon by the second week of September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Swainson's Hawk in Oregon?
The Swainson's Hawk is reported most often in mid May, on about 1.5% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Swainson's Hawks seen most often?
By county, Union County, Morrow County, and Baker County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Swainson's Hawk (counties with at least 200 checklists).