WhenToBird

Zonotrichia leucophrys · Passerellidae

When Do White-crowned Sparrows Arrive in Washington?

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

White-crowned Sparrows are in Washington all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early April, peak in late April (41% of checklists), and fall back by mid May. In the quietest week (late February) they are still on about 9.1% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildApr 1-7early April
PeakApr 22-30late April
Fall back byMay 15-21mid May
FewestFeb 22-28late February

Best: late April. Here all year; numbers build from early April and fall back by mid May. Peak: on about 41% of Washington checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 11% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 11% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 10% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.7% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 9.8% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 9.7% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 9.0% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 8.9% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 9.4% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 9.9% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 12% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 18% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 27% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 34% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 42% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 44% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 36% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 28% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 25% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 24% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 24% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 25% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 25% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 26% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 26% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 25% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 21% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 17% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 14% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 13% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 19% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 23% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 27% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 25% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 22% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 19% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 17% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 14% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 14% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 12% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 12% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 12% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 12% of 42130 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 Washington 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 Washington

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Walla Walla CountyBest late September · 900 checklists that week, 35,829 in all69%
  2. Jefferson CountyBest late April · 1802 checklists that week, 59,663 in all66%
  3. Benton CountyBest late September · 433 checklists that week, 23,565 in all65%
  4. Franklin CountyBest late September · 168 checklists that week, 7,970 in all65%
  5. Garfield CountyBest the second week of December · 17 checklists that week, 1,130 in all65%
  6. Adams CountyBest mid September · 81 checklists that week, 4,574 in all64%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. W E Johnson ParkBenton County, best early October · 21 checklists that week, 1,031 in all100%
  2. Argyle LagoonSan Juan County, best late April · 30 checklists that week, 212 in all98%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the White-crowned Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (28% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (796) to judge1 am: too few checklists (776) to judge2 am: too few checklists (709) to judge3 am: too few checklists (901) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3221) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16576) to judge6 am: 31% of 56744 checklists7 am: 27% of 133294 checklists8 am: 23% of 184196 checklists9 am: 21% of 186303 checklists10 am: 19% of 177063 checklists11 am: 18% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 17% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 16% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 15% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 15% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 16% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 18% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 19% of 39886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (26969) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (12427) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (3658) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1500) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (834) 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
January11%11%10%9.7%
February9.8%9.7%9.0%8.9%
March9.4%9.9%12%18%
April27%34%42%44%
May36%28%25%24%
June24%25%25%26%
July26%25%21%17%
August14%13%12%15%
September19%23%27%25%
October22%19%17%16%
November14%14%14%12%
December12%12%11%12%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives early April, in the same week than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of September, 21 weeks later than Washington
  • Montana: arrives mid April, 2 weeks later than Washington
  • Nevada: arrives early September, 20 weeks later than Washington

Common questions

When do White-crowned Sparrows arrive in Washington?
White-crowned Sparrows are in Washington all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early April, peak in late April (41% of checklists), and fall back by mid May. In the quietest week (late February) they are still on about 9.1% of checklists.
When do White-crowned Sparrows leave Washington?
White-crowned Sparrows never fully leave Washington: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid May, but some are still reported in every week, about 9.1% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a White-crowned Sparrow in Washington?
The White-crowned Sparrow is reported most often in late April, on about 41% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are White-crowned Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Walla Walla County, Jefferson County, and Benton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the White-crowned Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).