WhenToBird

Catharus ustulatus · Turdidae

When Do Swainson's Thrushes Arrive in California?

Adult Swainson's Thrush
Photo: Dani Alba, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Swainson's Thrushes reach California in mid April, are common by early May, peak in mid May (8.6% of checklists), and most are gone by mid July.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byMay 1-7early May
PeakMay 15-21mid May
Most gone byJul 15-21mid July

Best: mid May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by mid July. Peak: on about 8.6% of California checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 0% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.3% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 6.7% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.7% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.2% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.1% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.8% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.5% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.3% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.0% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.5% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 4.6% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.3% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.0% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.0% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.0% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.6% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.0% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.2% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.1% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.5% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.9% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.4% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Del Norte CountyBest the second week of June · 370 checklists that week, 16,363 in all50%
  2. Humboldt CountyBest mid June · 1817 checklists that week, 95,963 in all47%
  3. Marin CountyBest early June · 2565 checklists that week, 135,728 in all31%
  4. Mendocino CountyBest the second week of June · 913 checklists that week, 47,934 in all24%
  5. Santa Cruz CountyBest early June · 2475 checklists that week, 140,819 in all21%
  6. Yolo CountyBest the second week of May · 1562 checklists that week, 67,424 in all20%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Swanton Pacific RanchSanta Cruz County, best late June · 23 checklists that week, 205 in all100%
  2. Burleigh H. Murray RanchSan Mateo County, best the second week of June · 40 checklists that week, 1,656 in all97%
  3. Palmer CreekHumboldt County, best late June · 51 checklists that week, 796 in all96%
  4. Audubon Canyon RanchMarin County, best late June · 20 checklists that week, 774 in all95%
  5. Butano State ParkSan Mateo County, best late June · 25 checklists that week, 410 in all95%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Swainson's Thrush is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (2.7% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 3.5% of 186053 checklists7 am: 2.4% of 444086 checklists8 am: 2.2% of 535846 checklists9 am: 1.9% of 486061 checklists10 am: 1.6% of 411130 checklists11 am: 1.4% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 1.3% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 1.1% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 1.1% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 1.0% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 1.5% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 1.8% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0.1%0%
April0.1%0.1%0.4%2.3%
May6.7%8.7%9.2%8.1%
June6.8%6.5%6.3%6.0%
July5.5%4.6%3.3%2.0%
August1.1%1.0%1.0%1.6%
September2.0%2.2%2.1%1.5%
October0.9%0.4%0.2%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives the second week of May, 3 weeks later than California
  • Utah: arrives late May, 5 weeks later than California
  • Arizona: arrives early May, 2 weeks later than California
  • Oregon: arrives early May, 2 weeks later than California

Common questions

When do Swainson's Thrushes arrive in California?
Swainson's Thrushes reach California in mid April, are common by early May, peak in mid May (8.6% of checklists), and most are gone by mid July.
When do Swainson's Thrushes leave California?
Most Swainson's Thrushes have left California by mid July, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late September.
When is the best time to see a Swainson's Thrush in California?
The Swainson's Thrush is reported most often in mid May, on about 8.6% of California checklists.
Where in California are Swainson's Thrushes seen most often?
By county, Del Norte County, Humboldt County, and Marin County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Swainson's Thrush (counties with at least 200 checklists).