WhenToBird

Cathartes aura · Cathartidae

When Do Turkey Vultures Arrive in Minnesota?

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

Turkey Vultures reach Minnesota in mid March, are common by early April, peak in early May (15% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byApr 1-7early April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone byOct 8-14the second week of October

Best: early May. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by the second week of October. Peak: on about 15% of Minnesota checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 0% of 20628 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 14594 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 14238 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 20725 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 14484 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 15988 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 20718 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 15754 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 16125 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.5% of 19035 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.3% of 19586 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.1% of 30192 checklistsApr 1-7: 11% of 24262 checklistsApr 8-14: 15% of 30223 checklistsApr 15-21: 14% of 29085 checklistsApr 22-30: 14% of 43574 checklistsMay 1-7: 15% of 39300 checklistsMay 8-14: 15% of 45927 checklistsMay 15-21: 13% of 36632 checklistsMay 22-31: 13% of 43809 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 23418 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 20450 checklistsJun 15-21: 13% of 19470 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 23418 checklistsJul 1-7: 11% of 19104 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 16927 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 15635 checklistsJul 22-31: 9.6% of 22073 checklistsAug 1-7: 9.1% of 16255 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.3% of 16840 checklistsAug 15-21: 9.9% of 17475 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 26545 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 20750 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 18494 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 18215 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 24463 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 18252 checklistsOct 8-14: 7.6% of 19527 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.5% of 17098 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.6% of 24570 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 16744 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 13483 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 12525 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 17023 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 11645 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 11567 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 13343 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 19759 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 Minnesota 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 Minnesota

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fillmore CountyBest late April · 146 checklists that week, 3,791 in all49%
  2. Winona CountyBest mid June · 169 checklists that week, 7,042 in all44%
  3. Houston CountyBest early May · 214 checklists that week, 4,754 in all42%
  4. Goodhue CountyBest mid May · 753 checklists that week, 16,294 in all41%
  5. Rock CountyBest late April · 111 checklists that week, 1,979 in all40%
  6. Blue Earth CountyBest early September · 85 checklists that week, 3,002 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Rebecca (Pool 2)Dakota County, best late July · 22 checklists that week, 793 in all96%
  2. Enger ParkSt. Louis County, best mid April · 33 checklists that week, 447 in all91%
  3. Land of Memories ParkBlue Earth County, best late August · 22 checklists that week, 101 in all87%
  4. Brush LakebedLyon County, best the second week of September · 39 checklists that week, 407 in all81%

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

Best time of day

In Minnesota, the Turkey Vulture is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (9.7% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (349) to judge1 am: too few checklists (331) to judge2 am: too few checklists (286) to judge3 am: too few checklists (364) to judge4 am: too few checklists (863) to judge5 am: too few checklists (7598) to judge6 am: 6.5% of 35775 checklists7 am: 6.2% of 90565 checklists8 am: 8.0% of 110612 checklists9 am: 9.6% of 106128 checklists10 am: 9.9% of 96131 checklists11 am: 9.4% of 83750 checklists12 pm: 8.9% of 76254 checklists1 pm: 9.0% of 73480 checklists2 pm: 8.5% of 73703 checklists3 pm: 8.1% of 75249 checklists4 pm: 7.8% of 68810 checklists5 pm: 8.1% of 51899 checklists6 pm: 6.6% of 38524 checklists7 pm: 3.9% of 25120 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (10568) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2420) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (748) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (420) 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%
February0.1%0%0%0.1%
March0.1%0.5%1.3%4.1%
April11%15%14%14%
May15%15%13%13%
June13%13%13%12%
July11%11%11%9.6%
August9.1%9.3%9.9%11%
September13%12%14%14%
October12%7.6%3.5%0.6%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0%0%0.1%0%

Neighboring states

  • Iowa: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Minnesota
  • Wisconsin: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Minnesota
  • South Dakota: arrives late March, 1 week later than Minnesota
  • North Dakota: arrives late March, 1 week later than Minnesota

Common questions

When do Turkey Vultures arrive in Minnesota?
Turkey Vultures reach Minnesota in mid March, are common by early April, peak in early May (15% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.
When do Turkey Vultures leave Minnesota?
Most Turkey Vultures have left Minnesota by the second week of October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late October.
When is the best time to see a Turkey Vulture in Minnesota?
The Turkey Vulture is reported most often in early May, on about 15% of Minnesota checklists.
Where in Minnesota are Turkey Vultures seen most often?
By county, Fillmore County, Winona County, and Houston County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Turkey Vulture (counties with at least 200 checklists).