WhenToBird

Catharus ustulatus · Turdidae

When Do Swainson's Thrushes Arrive in Montana?

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

Swainson's Thrushes reach Montana in the second week of May, are common by mid May, peak in the second week of July (20% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 8-14the second week of May
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakJul 8-14the second week of July
Most gone byAug 1-7early August

Best: the second week of July. First arrivals the second week of May; most are gone by early August. Peak: on about 20% of Montana checklists.

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

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0% of 7987 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 5561 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 5613 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 7881 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 5018 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 5598 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 7247 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 5531 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 6110 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 6623 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 7687 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 11095 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 7774 checklistsApr 8-14: 0% of 8785 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 9684 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 13805 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 11847 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.3% of 13547 checklistsMay 15-21: 10% of 13019 checklistsMay 22-31: 14% of 20456 checklistsJun 1-7: 11% of 12993 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 11594 checklistsJun 15-21: 17% of 11159 checklistsJun 22-30: 18% of 13786 checklistsJul 1-7: 20% of 9584 checklistsJul 8-14: 20% of 9078 checklistsJul 15-21: 19% of 7905 checklistsJul 22-31: 10% of 10906 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.3% of 7335 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.2% of 6868 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.3% of 6866 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.7% of 10076 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.5% of 7670 checklistsSep 8-14: 6.2% of 7490 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.9% of 6804 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.4% of 8016 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.5% of 5996 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 6156 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 5742 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 7790 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 5353 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 5475 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 4603 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 6067 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 4362 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 4467 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 5328 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 6672 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 Montana 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 Montana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lincoln CountyBest early July · 264 checklists that week, 5,543 in all58%
  2. Mineral CountyBest the second week of July · 74 checklists that week, 2,163 in all48%
  3. Glacier CountyBest the second week of July · 585 checklists that week, 9,238 in all44%
  4. Flathead CountyBest late June · 1700 checklists that week, 40,185 in all44%
  5. Liberty CountyBest late May · 65 checklists that week, 800 in all32%
  6. Sanders CountyBest early July · 104 checklists that week, 3,767 in all31%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Glacier National Park (southwest 2)Flathead County, best late June · 21 checklists that week, 210 in all92%
  2. Avalanche LakeFlathead County, best the second week of July · 27 checklists that week, 338 in all91%
  3. Glacier National Park (southwest 3)Flathead County, best late June · 25 checklists that week, 207 in all85%
  4. Glacier National Park (east)Glacier County, best the second week of July · 25 checklists that week, 322 in all81%

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

Best time of day

In Montana, the Swainson's Thrush is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (9.5% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (183) to judge1 am: too few checklists (169) to judge2 am: too few checklists (163) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (503) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4022) to judge6 am: 13% of 12719 checklists7 am: 8.1% of 31202 checklists8 am: 5.6% of 47646 checklists9 am: 5.4% of 44624 checklists10 am: 4.9% of 40704 checklists11 am: 4.1% of 33825 checklists12 pm: 3.3% of 29407 checklists1 pm: 3.3% of 27959 checklists2 pm: 3.0% of 26928 checklists3 pm: 3.0% of 25313 checklists4 pm: 3.2% of 22151 checklists5 pm: 4.3% of 16884 checklists6 pm: 5.9% of 13780 checklists7 pm: 7.5% of 9926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5765) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2099) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (595) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (230) 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%0%
April0%0%0%0.1%
May0.3%2.3%10%14%
June11%13%17%18%
July20%20%19%10%
August4.3%3.2%3.3%4.7%
September6.5%6.2%2.9%1.4%
October0.5%0.3%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Idaho: arrives mid May, 1 week later than Montana
  • Wyoming: arrives early May, 1 week earlier than Montana
  • Utah: arrives late May, 2 weeks later than Montana
  • Washington: arrives the second week of May, in the same week than Montana

Common questions

When do Swainson's Thrushes arrive in Montana?
Swainson's Thrushes reach Montana in the second week of May, are common by mid May, peak in the second week of July (20% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.
When do Swainson's Thrushes leave Montana?
Most Swainson's Thrushes have left Montana by early August, 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 Montana?
The Swainson's Thrush is reported most often in the second week of July, on about 20% of Montana checklists.
Where in Montana are Swainson's Thrushes seen most often?
By county, Lincoln County, Mineral County, and Glacier County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Swainson's Thrush (counties with at least 200 checklists).