WhenToBird

Cathartes aura · Cathartidae

When Do Turkey Vultures Arrive in Montana?

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

Turkey Vultures reach Montana in mid March, are common by early April, peak in the second week of September (12% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

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

Best: the second week of September. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 12% of Montana checklists.

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

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0% of 7987 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 5561 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 5613 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 7881 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 5018 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 5598 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 7247 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 5531 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 6110 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 6623 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 7687 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.8% of 11095 checklistsApr 1-7: 6.9% of 7774 checklistsApr 8-14: 9.2% of 8785 checklistsApr 15-21: 10% of 9684 checklistsApr 22-30: 9.8% of 13805 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.9% of 11847 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.7% of 13547 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.1% of 13019 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.9% of 20456 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.3% of 12993 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.3% of 11594 checklistsJun 15-21: 9.2% of 11159 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.3% of 13786 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.2% of 9584 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.1% of 9078 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.2% of 7905 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.9% of 10906 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.2% of 7335 checklistsAug 8-14: 7.9% of 6868 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.6% of 6866 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 10076 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 7670 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 7490 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 6804 checklistsSep 22-30: 9.7% of 8016 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.0% of 5996 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 6156 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 5742 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 7790 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 5353 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 5475 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 4603 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 6067 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 4362 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 4467 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 5328 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 6672 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 Montana 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 Montana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Musselshell CountyBest mid September · 12 checklists that week, 961 in all50%
  2. Dawson CountyBest late April · 15 checklists that week, 743 in all45%
  3. Garfield CountyBest the second week of September · 13 checklists that week, 504 in all42%
  4. Wibaux CountyBest early September · 13 checklists that week, 435 in all36%
  5. Sweet Grass CountyBest the second week of September · 36 checklists that week, 1,532 in all30%
  6. Broadwater CountyBest late August · 114 checklists that week, 2,470 in all29%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Makoshika State ParkDawson County, best mid June · 22 checklists that week, 212 in all60%
  2. Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge (northeast)Ravalli County, best mid June · 23 checklists that week, 838 in all56%
  3. Missouri Headwaters State Park (Spring Creek)Gallatin County, best the second week of May · 24 checklists that week, 287 in all55%
  4. Boxelder LakeSheridan County, best the second week of September · 26 checklists that week, 209 in all53%
  5. Upper Missouri River Breaks National MonumentFergus County, best late May · 29 checklists that week, 136 in all53%
  6. Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park (Cave Mountain)Jefferson County, best late June · 31 checklists that week, 258 in all52%

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

Best time of day

In Montana, the Turkey Vulture is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (6.7% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (183) to judge1 am: too few checklists (169) to judge2 am: too few checklists (163) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (503) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4022) to judge6 am: 4.6% of 12719 checklists7 am: 5.2% of 31202 checklists8 am: 5.0% of 47646 checklists9 am: 6.3% of 44624 checklists10 am: 6.7% of 40704 checklists11 am: 6.4% of 33825 checklists12 pm: 5.8% of 29407 checklists1 pm: 5.8% of 27959 checklists2 pm: 5.4% of 26928 checklists3 pm: 5.3% of 25313 checklists4 pm: 6.0% of 22151 checklists5 pm: 7.2% of 16884 checklists6 pm: 6.2% of 13780 checklists7 pm: 4.9% of 9926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5765) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2099) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (595) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (230) 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%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.4%2.8%
April6.9%9.2%10%9.8%
May9.9%8.7%9.1%8.9%
June8.3%8.3%9.2%8.3%
July8.2%7.1%7.2%6.9%
August7.2%7.9%8.6%11%
September11%12%12%9.7%
October3.0%0.2%0.2%0.1%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Idaho: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Montana
  • Wyoming: arrives late March, 1 week later than Montana
  • Utah: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Montana
  • Washington: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Montana

Common questions

When do Turkey Vultures arrive in Montana?
Turkey Vultures reach Montana in mid March, are common by early April, peak in the second week of September (12% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Turkey Vultures leave Montana?
Most Turkey Vultures have left Montana by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of October.
When is the best time to see a Turkey Vulture in Montana?
The Turkey Vulture is reported most often in the second week of September, on about 12% of Montana checklists.
Where in Montana are Turkey Vultures seen most often?
By county, Musselshell County, Dawson County, and Garfield County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Turkey Vulture (counties with at least 200 checklists).