WhenToBird

Zonotrichia leucophrys · Passerellidae

When Do White-crowned Sparrows Arrive in Oregon?

Adult White-crowned Sparrow
Photo: Alan Rockefeller, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

White-crowned Sparrows are in Oregon all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early April, peak in mid April (33% of checklists), and fall back by early May. In the quietest week (mid August) they are still on about 8.2% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildApr 1-7early April
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Fall back byMay 1-7early May
FewestAug 15-21mid August

Best: mid April. Here all year; numbers build from early April and fall back by early May. Peak: on about 33% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 13% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 13% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 12% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 12% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 11% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 11% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 10% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 11% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 11% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 12% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 13% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 19% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 25% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 31% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 37% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 32% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 23% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 17% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 13% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 14% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 16% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 17% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 15% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 13% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 10% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.1% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 7.6% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 8.0% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 19% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 23% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 24% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 23% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 21% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 18% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 17% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 17% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 15% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 16% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 15% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 16% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 14% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 14% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 14% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Harney CountyBest late September · 1221 checklists that week, 40,943 in all63%
  2. Lake CountyBest early October · 234 checklists that week, 13,301 in all59%
  3. Crook CountyBest early October · 172 checklists that week, 9,466 in all57%
  4. Lincoln CountyBest mid April · 1370 checklists that week, 66,994 in all56%
  5. Tillamook CountyBest mid April · 1046 checklists that week, 45,809 in all55%
  6. Morrow CountyBest late October · 51 checklists that week, 3,484 in all54%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Owen Rose GardenLane County, best early October · 30 checklists that week, 157 in all98%
  2. Cooper Mountain Nature ParkWashington County, best mid April · 67 checklists that week, 1,154 in all98%
  3. Marys Peak Botanical AreaBenton County, best late June · 28 checklists that week, 1,177 in all98%
  4. Nehalem Bay State ParkTillamook County, best early July · 38 checklists that week, 1,789 in all95%
  5. Ona Beach State ParkLincoln County, best mid June · 31 checklists that week, 2,548 in all94%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the White-crowned Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (19% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 17% of 50677 checklists7 am: 19% of 125347 checklists8 am: 19% of 163668 checklists9 am: 18% of 160351 checklists10 am: 17% of 148940 checklists11 am: 16% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 14% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 14% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 14% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 15% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 18% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 17% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 17% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 12% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January13%13%12%12%
February11%11%10%11%
March11%12%13%19%
April25%31%37%32%
May23%17%15%13%
June13%14%14%15%
July16%17%15%13%
August10%9.1%7.6%8.0%
September13%19%23%24%
October23%21%18%17%
November17%15%16%15%
December16%14%14%14%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives early April, in the same week than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of September, 21 weeks later than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives early September, 20 weeks later than Oregon
  • California: arrives late September, 23 weeks later than Oregon

Common questions

When do White-crowned Sparrows arrive in Oregon?
White-crowned Sparrows are in Oregon all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early April, peak in mid April (33% of checklists), and fall back by early May. In the quietest week (mid August) they are still on about 8.2% of checklists.
When do White-crowned Sparrows leave Oregon?
White-crowned Sparrows never fully leave Oregon: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early May, but some are still reported in every week, about 8.2% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a White-crowned Sparrow in Oregon?
The White-crowned Sparrow is reported most often in mid April, on about 33% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are White-crowned Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Harney County, Lake County, and Crook County have the highest peak reporting rates for the White-crowned Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).