WhenToBird

Cathartes aura · Cathartidae

When Do Turkey Vultures Arrive in Georgia?

Adult Turkey Vulture
Photo: Andrew Murray, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Turkey Vulture is in Georgia all year. It turns up on about 27% of checklists at its peak (the second week of March) and on 14% in its quietest week (the second week of July).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekMar 8-14the second week of March
Quietest weekJul 8-14the second week of July

Best: the second week of March. Here all year. Peak: on about 27% of Georgia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 23% of 22238 checklistsJan 8-14: 22% of 16390 checklistsJan 15-21: 22% of 16779 checklistsJan 22-31: 22% of 22964 checklistsFeb 1-7: 23% of 16870 checklistsFeb 8-14: 20% of 19486 checklistsFeb 15-21: 20% of 28540 checklistsFeb 22-28: 26% of 17005 checklistsMar 1-7: 28% of 15920 checklistsMar 8-14: 26% of 16274 checklistsMar 15-21: 27% of 16432 checklistsMar 22-31: 25% of 25318 checklistsApr 1-7: 24% of 19292 checklistsApr 8-14: 22% of 19742 checklistsApr 15-21: 21% of 21498 checklistsApr 22-30: 21% of 29736 checklistsMay 1-7: 18% of 20858 checklistsMay 8-14: 17% of 20346 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 15859 checklistsMay 22-31: 16% of 19867 checklistsJun 1-7: 16% of 13467 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 12812 checklistsJun 15-21: 15% of 11379 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 14121 checklistsJul 1-7: 14% of 11176 checklistsJul 8-14: 14% of 10695 checklistsJul 15-21: 14% of 10655 checklistsJul 22-31: 16% of 15106 checklistsAug 1-7: 16% of 10650 checklistsAug 8-14: 16% of 10247 checklistsAug 15-21: 15% of 10371 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 15203 checklistsSep 1-7: 17% of 13007 checklistsSep 8-14: 16% of 12541 checklistsSep 15-21: 16% of 12943 checklistsSep 22-30: 18% of 17655 checklistsOct 1-7: 20% of 14646 checklistsOct 8-14: 22% of 15836 checklistsOct 15-21: 23% of 13124 checklistsOct 22-31: 22% of 15859 checklistsNov 1-7: 23% of 11711 checklistsNov 8-14: 23% of 11587 checklistsNov 15-21: 24% of 12025 checklistsNov 22-30: 23% of 16431 checklistsDec 1-7: 21% of 11256 checklistsDec 8-14: 22% of 11967 checklistsDec 15-21: 23% of 15618 checklistsDec 22-31: 23% of 22453 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 Georgia 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Georgia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jeff Davis CountyBest mid September · 10 checklists that week, 627 in all95%
  2. Tattnall CountyBest early October · 19 checklists that week, 650 in all78%
  3. Stewart CountyBest early February · 11 checklists that week, 1,016 in all77%
  4. Clay CountyBest early November · 18 checklists that week, 775 in all72%
  5. Evans CountyBest the second week of January · 23 checklists that week, 341 in all72%
  6. Marion CountyBest late October · 10 checklists that week, 348 in all70%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Chatham County Wetlands PreserveChatham County, best late January · 21 checklists that week, 767 in all94%
  2. DeKalb County GreenspaceDeKalb County, best late March · 23 checklists that week, 217 in all84%
  3. Kolomoki Mounds State ParkEarly County, best the second week of April · 21 checklists that week, 368 in all81%
  4. Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge (north)McIntosh County, best late March · 21 checklists that week, 353 in all79%
  5. Davidson-Arabia Nature PreserveDeKalb County, best late March · 22 checklists that week, 359 in all78%

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

Best time of day

In Georgia, the Turkey Vulture is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (28% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (334) to judge1 am: too few checklists (277) to judge2 am: too few checklists (264) to judge3 am: too few checklists (282) to judge4 am: too few checklists (463) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1513) to judge6 am: 6.6% of 16790 checklists7 am: 11% of 73569 checklists8 am: 15% of 104956 checklists9 am: 22% of 96241 checklists10 am: 27% of 81903 checklists11 am: 27% of 66236 checklists12 pm: 27% of 56159 checklists1 pm: 28% of 48260 checklists2 pm: 28% of 46435 checklists3 pm: 24% of 46015 checklists4 pm: 18% of 47438 checklists5 pm: 14% of 38866 checklists6 pm: 10% of 26032 checklists7 pm: 5.0% of 16610 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5490) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (995) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (310) 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
January23%22%22%22%
February23%20%20%26%
March28%26%27%25%
April24%22%21%21%
May18%17%15%16%
June16%14%15%15%
July14%14%14%16%
August16%16%15%15%
September17%16%16%18%
October20%22%23%22%
November23%23%24%23%
December21%22%23%23%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Turkey Vultures arrive in Georgia?
The Turkey Vulture is in Georgia all year. It turns up on about 27% of checklists at its peak (the second week of March) and on 14% in its quietest week (the second week of July).
When do Turkey Vultures leave Georgia?
The Turkey Vulture does not leave Georgia: it is reported all year, from 14% of checklists in the second week of July to 27% in the second week of March.
When is the best time to see a Turkey Vulture in Georgia?
The Turkey Vulture is reported most often in the second week of March, on about 27% of Georgia checklists.
Where in Georgia are Turkey Vultures seen most often?
By county, Jeff Davis County, Tattnall County, and Stewart County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Turkey Vulture (counties with at least 200 checklists).