WhenToBird

Myadestes townsendi · Turdidae

When Do Townsend's Solitaires Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Townsend's Solitaire
Photo: Cole Wolf, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Townsend's Solitaires reach Oregon in late August, are common by early September, peak in late September (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early July.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 22-31late August
Common bySep 1-7early September
PeakSep 22-30late September
Most gone byJul 1-7early July

Best: late September. First arrivals late August; most are gone by early July. Peak: on about 4.6% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 2.1% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.1% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.3% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.4% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.3% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.0% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.3% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.7% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.2% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.1% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.2% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.6% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.1% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.0% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.9% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.3% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.1% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.3% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.3% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.6% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.8% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.6% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.7% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.0% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.7% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.4% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.6% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.3% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.2% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.0% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.1% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.0% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.0% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.2% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.6% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 5.1% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.1% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.1% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.4% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.2% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.1% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.0% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.7% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.5% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.8% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.1% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.7% 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. Wheeler CountyBest the second week of January · 26 checklists that week, 3,129 in all55%
  2. Deschutes CountyBest early October · 1591 checklists that week, 86,260 in all40%
  3. Grant CountyBest the second week of January · 40 checklists that week, 6,818 in all38%
  4. Crook CountyBest the second week of October · 168 checklists that week, 9,466 in all34%
  5. Jefferson CountyBest late September · 210 checklists that week, 11,014 in all32%
  6. Lake CountyBest late October · 85 checklists that week, 13,301 in all32%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Smith Rock State ParkDeschutes County, best late October · 38 checklists that week, 1,733 in all84%
  2. Upper Tumalo ReservoirDeschutes County, best late September · 37 checklists that week, 891 in all81%
  3. Deschutes National ForestDeschutes County, best late September · 32 checklists that week, 1,817 in all80%
  4. Sawyer ParkDeschutes County, best early December · 25 checklists that week, 1,775 in all74%
  5. Tumalo State ParkDeschutes County, best late September · 27 checklists that week, 609 in all74%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Townsend's Solitaire is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (2.8% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%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: 2.0% of 50677 checklists7 am: 2.3% of 125347 checklists8 am: 2.8% of 163668 checklists9 am: 2.8% of 160351 checklists10 am: 2.6% of 148940 checklists11 am: 2.4% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 2.3% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 2.3% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 2.2% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 2.0% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 1.6% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 1.3% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 0.9% 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
January2.1%2.1%2.3%2.4%
February2.3%2.0%2.3%1.7%
March2.2%2.1%2.2%2.6%
April2.1%2.0%1.9%1.3%
May1.1%1.3%1.3%1.6%
June1.8%1.6%1.7%2.0%
July1.7%1.4%1.6%1.3%
August1.2%1.0%1.1%1.1%
September2.0%3.0%4.2%4.6%
October5.1%4.1%4.1%3.4%
November3.2%3.1%3.0%2.7%
December2.5%2.8%3.1%2.7%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives early November, 9 weeks later than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives early September, 1 week later than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives early September, 1 week later than Oregon
  • California: arrives mid March, 21 weeks earlier than Oregon

Common questions

When do Townsend's Solitaires arrive in Oregon?
Townsend's Solitaires reach Oregon in late August, are common by early September, peak in late September (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early July.
When do Townsend's Solitaires leave Oregon?
Most Townsend's Solitaires have left Oregon by early July, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late July.
When is the best time to see a Townsend's Solitaire in Oregon?
The Townsend's Solitaire is reported most often in late September, on about 4.6% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Townsend's Solitaires seen most often?
By county, Wheeler County, Deschutes County, and Grant County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Townsend's Solitaire (counties with at least 200 checklists).