WhenToBird

Rallus limicola · Rallidae

When Do Virginia Rails Arrive in Wisconsin?

Adult Virginia Rail
Photo: sprcrkwild, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Virginia Rails arrive in Wisconsin in mid April, peak in early May (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone bySep 1-7early September

Best: early May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by early September. Peak: on about 1.5% of Wisconsin checklists.

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

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 27925 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 18337 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 17370 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 23777 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 16656 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 18286 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 24739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 20113 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 24024 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 26722 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 27238 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 40171 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 34961 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.5% of 39128 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.0% of 38887 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.5% of 57231 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.6% of 55115 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.4% of 63098 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.4% of 49821 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.4% of 56796 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.3% of 33621 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.0% of 31282 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.2% of 30186 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.1% of 35128 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.3% of 27088 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.4% of 23293 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.3% of 20933 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.5% of 27595 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.6% of 19147 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.4% of 18286 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.2% of 19195 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.9% of 28229 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.6% of 22408 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.5% of 20857 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.6% of 20707 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.4% of 26469 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 21069 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 21011 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 20006 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 26362 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 18928 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 17052 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 16291 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 20564 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 15354 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 16294 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 21430 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 26314 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 Wisconsin 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Wisconsin

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Dodge CountyBest the second week of August · 811 checklists that week, 34,980 in all13%
  2. Manitowoc CountyBest early August · 340 checklists that week, 26,017 in all7.4%
  3. Brown CountyBest late July · 850 checklists that week, 36,306 in all5.9%
  4. Ashland CountyBest the second week of August · 300 checklists that week, 16,576 in all5.7%
  5. Green Lake CountyBest late April · 602 checklists that week, 15,345 in all5.0%
  6. Price CountyBest the second week of May · 138 checklists that week, 5,795 in all4.7%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jenni & Kyle PreserveDane County, best mid February · 25 checklists that week, 392 in all44%
  2. Horicon National Wildlife Refuge (Stony Island)Dodge County, best early August · 100 checklists that week, 1,653 in all40%
  3. White River Marsh Wildlife AreaGreen Lake County, best early May · 29 checklists that week, 174 in all33%
  4. Green Bay West Shores Wildlife AreaBrown County, best late July · 41 checklists that week, 1,294 in all33%

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

Best time of day

In Wisconsin, the Virginia Rail is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (1.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (993) to judge1 am: too few checklists (844) to judge2 am: too few checklists (839) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1488) to judge4 am: too few checklists (5344) to judge5 am: 1.9% of 27016 checklists6 am: 1.4% of 83973 checklists7 am: 0.8% of 160717 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 160531 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 136968 checklists10 am: 0.5% of 119110 checklists11 am: 0.5% of 99116 checklists12 pm: 0.4% of 85078 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 80688 checklists2 pm: 0.4% of 79140 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 78599 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 69767 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 53229 checklists6 pm: 1.3% of 38769 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24396) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (10155) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4990) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2463) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1281) 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%0%
February0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0.1%0.5%1.0%1.5%
May1.6%1.4%1.4%1.4%
June1.3%1.0%1.2%1.1%
July1.3%1.4%1.3%1.5%
August1.6%1.4%1.2%0.9%
September0.6%0.5%0.6%0.4%
October0.2%0.2%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0%0%0.1%
December0%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: arrives early April, 2 weeks earlier than Wisconsin
  • Michigan: arrives early April, 2 weeks earlier than Wisconsin
  • Minnesota: arrives mid April, in the same week than Wisconsin
  • Indiana: arrives the second week of April, 1 week earlier than Wisconsin

Common questions

When do Virginia Rails arrive in Wisconsin?
Virginia Rails arrive in Wisconsin in mid April, peak in early May (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.
When do Virginia Rails leave Wisconsin?
Most Virginia Rails have left Wisconsin by early September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Virginia Rail in Wisconsin?
The Virginia Rail is reported most often in early May, on about 1.5% of Wisconsin checklists.
Where in Wisconsin are Virginia Rails seen most often?
By county, Dodge County, Manitowoc County, and Brown County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Virginia Rail (counties with at least 200 checklists).