WhenToBird

Cathartes aura · Cathartidae

When Do Turkey Vultures Arrive in Maine?

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

Turkey Vultures reach Maine in mid February, are common by the second week of March, peak in the second week of April (13% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 15-21mid February
Common byMar 8-14the second week of March
PeakApr 8-14the second week of April
Most gone byNov 1-7early November

Best: the second week of April. First arrivals mid February; most are gone by early November. Peak: on about 13% of Maine checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febrare
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0.2% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.2% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.2% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.3% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.3% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.0% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.7% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.4% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.6% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.8% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 6.8% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.3% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 12% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 13% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 13% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 12% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 11% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 11% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.0% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.5% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 7.4% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.7% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.7% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.0% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.1% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.8% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.8% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.7% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.9% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.4% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 5.4% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.1% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.2% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 6.9% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.7% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 8.1% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 8.1% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.1% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 7.3% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.1% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.8% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.4% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.6% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.5% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.4% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.3% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Androscoggin CountyBest late October · 430 checklists that week, 16,955 in all22%
  2. Knox CountyBest the second week of April · 579 checklists that week, 34,453 in all17%
  3. Cumberland CountyBest the second week of April · 4597 checklists that week, 169,501 in all15%
  4. Piscataquis CountyBest early May · 133 checklists that week, 14,837 in all15%
  5. Oxford CountyBest mid April · 323 checklists that week, 15,115 in all14%
  6. Hancock CountyBest mid April · 2192 checklists that week, 118,358 in all14%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bradbury Mountain State ParkCumberland County, best the second week of April · 50 checklists that week, 377 in all89%
  2. Acadia National ParkHancock County, best mid September · 62 checklists that week, 1,040 in all68%
  3. Mount AgamenticusYork County, best the second week of April · 25 checklists that week, 1,103 in all67%
  4. Acadia National Park (Champlain Mountain)Hancock County, best late May · 37 checklists that week, 300 in all57%
  5. Sieur de Monts SpringHancock County, best late April · 51 checklists that week, 1,860 in all57%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Turkey Vulture is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (8.0% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 2.2% of 19895 checklists6 am: 3.7% of 54578 checklists7 am: 5.0% of 92775 checklists8 am: 6.6% of 86962 checklists9 am: 7.9% of 78989 checklists10 am: 8.0% of 70954 checklists11 am: 7.4% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 7.0% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 7.4% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 7.0% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 7.2% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 7.2% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 6.0% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 3.9% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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
January0.2%0.2%0.2%0.3%
February0.3%1.0%0.7%1.4%
March2.6%4.8%6.8%9.3%
April12%13%13%12%
May11%11%9.0%8.5%
June7.4%6.7%6.7%6.0%
July6.1%5.8%5.8%5.7%
August4.9%4.4%5.4%6.1%
September6.2%6.9%7.7%8.1%
October8.1%9.1%7.3%5.1%
November3.8%2.4%1.6%1.2%
December0.7%0.5%0.4%0.3%

Neighboring states

  • New Hampshire: arrives late December, 7 weeks earlier than Maine
  • Massachusetts: arrives the second week of February, 1 week earlier than Maine
  • Vermont: arrives early March, 2 weeks later than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives mid March, 4 weeks later than Maine

Common questions

When do Turkey Vultures arrive in Maine?
Turkey Vultures reach Maine in mid February, are common by the second week of March, peak in the second week of April (13% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.
When do Turkey Vultures leave Maine?
Most Turkey Vultures have left Maine by early November, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late November.
When is the best time to see a Turkey Vulture in Maine?
The Turkey Vulture is reported most often in the second week of April, on about 13% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Turkey Vultures seen most often?
By county, Androscoggin County, Knox County, and Cumberland County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Turkey Vulture (counties with at least 200 checklists).