WhenToBird

Cathartes aura · Cathartidae

When Do Turkey Vultures Arrive in Mississippi?

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

The Turkey Vulture is in Mississippi all year. It turns up on about 22% of checklists at its peak (late March) and on 11% in its quietest week (mid July).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekMar 22-31late March
Quietest weekJul 15-21mid July

Best: late March. Here all year. Peak: on about 22% of Mississippi checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  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: 18% of 4836 checklistsJan 8-14: 16% of 3323 checklistsJan 15-21: 16% of 3400 checklistsJan 22-31: 17% of 4705 checklistsFeb 1-7: 18% of 3387 checklistsFeb 8-14: 17% of 3911 checklistsFeb 15-21: 17% of 4691 checklistsFeb 22-28: 21% of 3409 checklistsMar 1-7: 22% of 3276 checklistsMar 8-14: 20% of 3273 checklistsMar 15-21: 22% of 3552 checklistsMar 22-31: 23% of 5618 checklistsApr 1-7: 20% of 4432 checklistsApr 8-14: 20% of 4907 checklistsApr 15-21: 20% of 5239 checklistsApr 22-30: 18% of 7043 checklistsMay 1-7: 19% of 4597 checklistsMay 8-14: 17% of 4383 checklistsMay 15-21: 17% of 3088 checklistsMay 22-31: 15% of 3805 checklistsJun 1-7: 14% of 2658 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 2469 checklistsJun 15-21: 14% of 2112 checklistsJun 22-30: 14% of 2534 checklistsJul 1-7: 14% of 2099 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 1885 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 1811 checklistsJul 22-31: 12% of 2793 checklistsAug 1-7: 13% of 2045 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 2210 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 2437 checklistsAug 22-31: 13% of 3415 checklistsSep 1-7: 14% of 2837 checklistsSep 8-14: 13% of 2585 checklistsSep 15-21: 15% of 2870 checklistsSep 22-30: 16% of 3610 checklistsOct 1-7: 18% of 2938 checklistsOct 8-14: 18% of 3457 checklistsOct 15-21: 19% of 3168 checklistsOct 22-31: 17% of 3752 checklistsNov 1-7: 20% of 2847 checklistsNov 8-14: 18% of 2648 checklistsNov 15-21: 20% of 2599 checklistsNov 22-30: 18% of 3389 checklistsDec 1-7: 16% of 2419 checklistsDec 8-14: 18% of 2526 checklistsDec 15-21: 22% of 2966 checklistsDec 22-31: 20% of 4466 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 Mississippi 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 Mississippi

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Yazoo CountyBest late September · 13 checklists that week, 440 in all74%
  2. Itawamba CountyBest mid March · 11 checklists that week, 648 in all72%
  3. Marion CountyBest early June · 11 checklists that week, 380 in all69%
  4. Adams CountyBest the second week of November · 33 checklists that week, 1,749 in all69%
  5. Winston CountyBest mid November · 10 checklists that week, 382 in all67%
  6. George CountyBest early March · 15 checklists that week, 490 in all65%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Plymouth BluffLowndes County, best late March · 24 checklists that week, 333 in all83%
  2. Vicksburg National Military ParkWarren County, best early April · 25 checklists that week, 383 in all78%
  3. Bouie RiverForrest County, best late March · 45 checklists that week, 746 in all58%
  4. Campbell Inside BayouHancock County, best early April · 26 checklists that week, 432 in all57%
  5. Natchez Trace ParkwayTishomingo County, best mid April · 20 checklists that week, 956 in all52%

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

Best time of day

In Mississippi, the Turkey Vulture is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (25% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (54) to judge1 am: too few checklists (48) to judge2 am: too few checklists (28) to judge3 am: too few checklists (60) to judge4 am: too few checklists (114) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1139) to judge6 am: 7.2% of 9054 checklists7 am: 9.6% of 18481 checklists8 am: 17% of 17525 checklists9 am: 23% of 15482 checklists10 am: 24% of 14380 checklists11 am: 25% of 12728 checklists12 pm: 25% of 11009 checklists1 pm: 25% of 10651 checklists2 pm: 23% of 10787 checklists3 pm: 18% of 11221 checklists4 pm: 13% of 11861 checklists5 pm: 8.3% of 8854 checklists6 pm: 4.3% of 6018 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (2387) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (314) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (114) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (63) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (48) 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
January18%16%16%17%
February18%17%17%21%
March22%20%22%23%
April20%20%20%18%
May19%17%17%15%
June14%13%14%14%
July14%11%11%12%
August13%12%12%13%
September14%13%15%16%
October18%18%19%17%
November20%18%20%18%
December16%18%22%20%

Neighboring states

  • Alabama: year-round, peaks early March
  • Louisiana: all year, most in winter, peaks late December
  • Arkansas: year-round, peaks late March
  • Georgia: year-round, peaks the second week of March

Common questions

When do Turkey Vultures arrive in Mississippi?
The Turkey Vulture is in Mississippi all year. It turns up on about 22% of checklists at its peak (late March) and on 11% in its quietest week (mid July).
When do Turkey Vultures leave Mississippi?
The Turkey Vulture does not leave Mississippi: it is reported all year, from 11% of checklists in mid July to 22% in late March.
When is the best time to see a Turkey Vulture in Mississippi?
The Turkey Vulture is reported most often in late March, on about 22% of Mississippi checklists.
Where in Mississippi are Turkey Vultures seen most often?
By county, Yazoo County, Itawamba County, and Marion County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Turkey Vulture (counties with at least 200 checklists).