WhenToBird

Aechmophorus occidentalis · Podicipedidae

When Do Western Grebes Arrive in Arizona?

Adult Western Grebe
Photo: Craig K, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Western Grebes are winter birds in Arizona: they arrive in the second week of September, peak in early November (4.3% of checklists), and most are gone by mid April.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 8-14the second week of September
Common bySep 8-14the second week of September
PeakNov 1-7early November
Most gone byApr 15-21mid April

Best: early November. First arrivals the second week of September; most are gone by mid April. Peak: on about 4.3% of Arizona checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 1.6% of 34758 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.7% of 29835 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.6% of 29279 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.4% of 39716 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.2% of 27299 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.2% of 28703 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.0% of 35357 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.0% of 29889 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.1% of 29932 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.9% of 32982 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.1% of 34731 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.0% of 50213 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.0% of 35788 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.0% of 38087 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.9% of 41520 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.9% of 55218 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.7% of 39688 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.9% of 39398 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.8% of 29562 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.6% of 36774 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 21313 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 19129 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 17922 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 21188 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 17325 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 16463 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.5% of 18642 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.5% of 31215 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.3% of 28163 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 31329 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.7% of 23878 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.7% of 28508 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.9% of 20878 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.1% of 19671 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.4% of 19859 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.5% of 25179 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.9% of 19420 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.6% of 21925 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.4% of 20995 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.1% of 29258 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.4% of 21269 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.4% of 22753 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.9% of 21982 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.1% of 29475 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.6% of 20810 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.4% of 22229 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.7% of 25148 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.5% of 39567 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 Arizona 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 Arizona

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. La Paz CountyBest the second week of November · 185 checklists that week, 7,279 in all20%
  2. Gila CountyBest mid January · 187 checklists that week, 14,834 in all18%
  3. Mohave CountyBest early January · 438 checklists that week, 18,083 in all15%
  4. Apache CountyBest early November · 93 checklists that week, 12,931 in all14%
  5. Navajo CountyBest early November · 224 checklists that week, 18,838 in all13%
  6. Graham CountyBest the second week of November · 148 checklists that week, 9,876 in all13%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Pleasant Regional Park (north)Yavapai County, best early January · 21 checklists that week, 302 in all92%
  2. Lake Pleasant Regional Park (Castle Creek)Yavapai County, best the second week of January · 23 checklists that week, 251 in all85%
  3. Ashurst LakeCoconino County, best early November · 59 checklists that week, 1,280 in all83%
  4. Canyon LakeMaricopa County, best early February · 20 checklists that week, 230 in all81%
  5. Jones CanyonMaricopa County, best late October · 27 checklists that week, 917 in all74%

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

Best time of day

In Arizona, the Western Grebe is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (1.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (488) to judge1 am: too few checklists (503) to judge2 am: too few checklists (489) to judge3 am: too few checklists (735) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4115) to judge5 am: 1.2% of 38350 checklists6 am: 1.1% of 118786 checklists7 am: 1.3% of 183415 checklists8 am: 1.4% of 187346 checklists9 am: 1.5% of 151342 checklists10 am: 1.5% of 124522 checklists11 am: 1.6% of 97088 checklists12 pm: 1.6% of 78110 checklists1 pm: 1.6% of 73059 checklists2 pm: 1.7% of 68912 checklists3 pm: 1.5% of 68060 checklists4 pm: 1.3% of 69387 checklists5 pm: 0.8% of 52951 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 31061 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (16076) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2369) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1100) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (604) 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
January1.6%1.7%1.6%1.4%
February1.2%1.2%1.0%1.0%
March1.1%0.9%1.1%1.0%
April1.0%1.0%0.9%0.9%
May0.7%0.9%0.8%0.6%
June0.5%0.5%0.6%0.6%
July0.5%0.7%0.5%0.5%
August0.3%0.3%0.7%0.7%
September0.9%1.1%1.4%1.5%
October1.9%2.6%3.4%4.1%
November4.4%4.4%3.9%3.1%
December2.6%2.4%1.7%1.5%

Neighboring states

  • New Mexico: arrives mid March, 23 weeks earlier than Arizona
  • Nevada: arrives late March, 22 weeks earlier than Arizona
  • Utah: arrives mid March, 23 weeks earlier than Arizona
  • California: arrives late October, 6 weeks later than Arizona

Common questions

When do Western Grebes arrive in Arizona?
Western Grebes are winter birds in Arizona: they arrive in the second week of September, peak in early November (4.3% of checklists), and most are gone by mid April.
When do Western Grebes leave Arizona?
Most Western Grebes have left Arizona by mid April, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Western Grebe in Arizona?
The Western Grebe is reported most often in early November, on about 4.3% of Arizona checklists.
Where in Arizona are Western Grebes seen most often?
By county, La Paz County, Gila County, and Mohave County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Western Grebe (counties with at least 200 checklists).