WhenToBird

Cathartes aura · Cathartidae

When Do Turkey Vultures Arrive in Nevada?

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

Turkey Vultures reach Nevada in mid February, are common by early March, peak in mid April (19% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 15-21mid February
Common byMar 1-7early March
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: mid April. First arrivals mid February; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 19% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  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%20%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.8% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.7% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.0% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 7.7% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 10% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 14% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 19% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 18% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 18% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 19% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 19% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 17% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 16% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 15% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 12% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 13% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 12% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 12% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 12% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 14% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 16% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 17% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 17% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 15% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 8.9% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.4% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.3% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 5101 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 Nevada 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 Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Storey CountyBest the second week of April · 48 checklists that week, 1,593 in all42%
  2. Lincoln CountyBest mid August · 45 checklists that week, 3,842 in all40%
  3. Douglas CountyBest mid April · 142 checklists that week, 7,476 in all40%
  4. Lander CountyBest mid September · 19 checklists that week, 1,413 in all34%
  5. Carson CityBest the second week of May · 222 checklists that week, 6,992 in all30%
  6. Pershing CountyBest late July · 16 checklists that week, 1,407 in all27%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pitch Fork CoveClark County, best late April · 47 checklists that week, 1,958 in all88%
  2. Warm SpringsClark County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 281 in all74%
  3. Crystal Peak ParkWashoe County, best late April · 68 checklists that week, 904 in all71%
  4. Swamp SpringClark County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 383 in all69%
  5. River Fork Ranch PreserveDouglas County, best late May · 22 checklists that week, 371 in all67%
  6. Rose Memorial ParkLincoln County, best the second week of September · 21 checklists that week, 673 in all67%

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

Best time of day

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

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 11% of 4313 checklists6 am: 9.5% of 17070 checklists7 am: 8.4% of 27389 checklists8 am: 10% of 24858 checklists9 am: 11% of 22012 checklists10 am: 10% of 19284 checklists11 am: 9.6% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 8.9% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 9.1% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 8.2% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 7.6% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 8.6% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 11% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 8.7% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.8%1.7%4.0%
March7.7%10%14%19%
April18%18%19%19%
May17%16%16%15%
June12%13%13%12%
July12%11%12%12%
August12%14%14%16%
September15%17%17%15%
October8.9%4.4%1.3%0.2%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • California: year-round, peaks late April
  • Utah: arrives the second week of March, 3 weeks later than Nevada
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of March, 3 weeks later than Nevada
  • Arizona: arrives mid March, 4 weeks later than Nevada

Common questions

When do Turkey Vultures arrive in Nevada?
Turkey Vultures reach Nevada in mid February, are common by early March, peak in mid April (19% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Turkey Vultures leave Nevada?
Most Turkey Vultures have left Nevada by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid October.
When is the best time to see a Turkey Vulture in Nevada?
The Turkey Vulture is reported most often in mid April, on about 19% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Turkey Vultures seen most often?
By county, Storey County, Lincoln County, and Douglas County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Turkey Vulture (counties with at least 200 checklists).