WhenToBird

Setophaga townsendi · Parulidae

When Do Townsend's Warblers Arrive in California?

Adult male Townsend's Warbler
Photo: Peter Chen 2.0, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Townsend's Warblers are winter birds in California: the first arrive in mid August, they are common by early September, peak in early October (16% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 15-21mid August
Common bySep 1-7early September
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byMay 8-14the second week of May

Best: early October. First arrivals mid August; most are gone by the second week of May. Peak: on about 16% of California checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 8.9% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.2% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 7.8% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.1% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 6.9% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 6.3% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.9% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.2% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.9% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.8% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 6.3% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.0% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 7.0% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.5% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.3% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.2% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 6.4% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.3% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.9% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.9% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.8% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.5% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.5% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 8.6% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 16% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 17% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 15% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 13% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 12% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 11% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 11% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 11% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 11% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 11% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 10% 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. San Francisco CountyBest early October · 3391 checklists that week, 130,018 in all53%
  2. Monterey CountyBest early October · 2950 checklists that week, 132,505 in all42%
  3. Santa Cruz CountyBest the second week of October · 3279 checklists that week, 140,819 in all36%
  4. San Luis Obispo CountyBest early October · 2517 checklists that week, 124,667 in all32%
  5. Santa Barbara CountyBest the second week of October · 2553 checklists that week, 120,616 in all25%
  6. San Mateo CountyBest early October · 2695 checklists that week, 148,781 in all21%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. EllwoodSanta Barbara County, best mid November · 40 checklists that week, 1,152 in all96%
  2. Estancia ParkOrange County, best mid December · 36 checklists that week, 251 in all96%
  3. Malpaso CreekMonterey County, best late October · 22 checklists that week, 365 in all95%
  4. George Washington ParkMonterey County, best mid November · 20 checklists that week, 932 in all94%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Townsend's Warbler is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (8.7% of those checklists).

0%5%10%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: 5.4% of 186053 checklists7 am: 8.4% of 444086 checklists8 am: 8.8% of 535846 checklists9 am: 8.5% of 486061 checklists10 am: 7.7% of 411130 checklists11 am: 7.1% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 6.8% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 6.3% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 6.1% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 5.8% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 4.8% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 3.7% 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
January8.9%8.2%7.8%7.1%
February6.9%6.3%5.9%6.2%
March5.9%5.8%6.3%7.0%
April7.0%5.5%4.3%5.2%
May6.4%5.3%3.9%1.9%
June0.4%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.3%0.8%2.5%
September5.5%8.6%13%16%
October17%15%14%13%
November12%11%11%11%
December11%11%11%10%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives late April, 15 weeks earlier than California
  • Utah: arrives mid August, in the same week than California
  • Arizona: arrives mid February, 24 weeks earlier than California
  • Oregon: arrives late August, 1 week later than California

Common questions

When do Townsend's Warblers arrive in California?
Townsend's Warblers are winter birds in California: the first arrive in mid August, they are common by early September, peak in early October (16% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.
When do Townsend's Warblers leave California?
Most Townsend's Warblers have left California by the second week of May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late May.
When is the best time to see a Townsend's Warbler in California?
The Townsend's Warbler is reported most often in early October, on about 16% of California checklists.
Where in California are Townsend's Warblers seen most often?
By county, San Francisco County, Monterey County, and Santa Cruz County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Townsend's Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).