WhenToBird

Pooecetes gramineus · Passerellidae

When Do Vesper Sparrows Arrive in Michigan?

Adult Vesper Sparrow
Photo: Dani Alba, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Vesper Sparrows arrive in Michigan in the second week of April, peak in mid June (2.9% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 8-14the second week of April
Common byApr 8-14the second week of April
PeakJun 15-21mid June
Most gone byAug 1-7early August

Best: mid June. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by early August. Peak: on about 2.9% of Michigan checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0% of 38160 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 24696 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 23771 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 31347 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 23225 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 27398 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 36606 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 27127 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 29700 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 31587 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 32118 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 47777 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.6% of 38557 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.2% of 42207 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.4% of 42759 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.3% of 64458 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 60998 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.4% of 72091 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.6% of 59058 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.9% of 64724 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.5% of 35990 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.0% of 32595 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.0% of 30017 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.8% of 33988 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.4% of 28708 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.0% of 25175 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.5% of 24084 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.1% of 33522 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.8% of 25098 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.7% of 24353 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 25059 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 37489 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.4% of 28410 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.5% of 27887 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.5% of 26614 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.7% of 32557 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.7% of 25844 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.5% of 27741 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 24693 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 32460 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 23660 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 21542 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 19922 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 25069 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 18272 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 18961 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 24171 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 30908 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 Michigan 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 Michigan

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Crawford CountyBest mid June · 1178 checklists that week, 16,949 in all22%
  2. Oscoda CountyBest the second week of July · 102 checklists that week, 4,044 in all17%
  3. Montmorency CountyBest early July · 52 checklists that week, 1,725 in all16%
  4. Baraga CountyBest mid June · 85 checklists that week, 3,662 in all14%
  5. Kalkaska CountyBest the second week of June · 280 checklists that week, 5,833 in all9.5%
  6. Ogemaw CountyBest the second week of June · 136 checklists that week, 4,675 in all9.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kirtland Warbler Unit Clear LakeCrawford County, best late June · 49 checklists that week, 438 in all76%
  2. Lapeer State Game Area (South Branch Flint River)Lapeer County, best the second week of May · 29 checklists that week, 253 in all71%
  3. Marquette County ForestMarquette County, best the second week of June · 21 checklists that week, 102 in all65%
  4. Portage Point Dunes-CMS Energy (Malcolm)Manistee County, best mid June · 20 checklists that week, 122 in all60%
  5. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (Mud Lake)Benzie County, best mid May · 21 checklists that week, 366 in all54%
  6. Kirtland Warbler Unit Manistee (northwest)Crawford County, best the second week of June · 25 checklists that week, 131 in all50%

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

Best time of day

In Michigan, the Vesper Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.3% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (712) to judge1 am: too few checklists (592) to judge2 am: too few checklists (532) to judge3 am: too few checklists (516) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1592) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6849) to judge6 am: 1.8% of 39298 checklists7 am: 1.2% of 120344 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 180109 checklists9 am: 1.0% of 171966 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 156332 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 134964 checklists12 pm: 0.7% of 120967 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 113852 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 110773 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 105530 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 100958 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 80085 checklists6 pm: 0.7% of 62883 checklists7 pm: 0.9% of 44912 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (21062) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5920) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1629) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (775) 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%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0%0%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0.6%1.2%1.4%1.3%
May1.2%1.4%1.6%1.9%
June2.5%3.0%3.0%2.8%
July2.4%2.0%1.5%1.1%
August0.8%0.7%0.5%0.4%
September0.4%0.5%0.5%0.7%
October0.7%0.5%0.3%0.1%
November0.1%0%0.1%0.1%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Ohio: arrives mid March, 3 weeks earlier than Michigan
  • Indiana: arrives mid March, 3 weeks earlier than Michigan
  • Illinois: arrives late March, 2 weeks earlier than Michigan
  • Wisconsin: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than Michigan

Common questions

When do Vesper Sparrows arrive in Michigan?
Vesper Sparrows arrive in Michigan in the second week of April, peak in mid June (2.9% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.
When do Vesper Sparrows leave Michigan?
Most Vesper Sparrows have left Michigan by early August, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Vesper Sparrow in Michigan?
The Vesper Sparrow is reported most often in mid June, on about 2.9% of Michigan checklists.
Where in Michigan are Vesper Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Crawford County, Oscoda County, and Montmorency County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Vesper Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).