WhenToBird

Plegadis chihi · Threskiornithidae

When Do White-faced Ibises Arrive in New Mexico?

Adult White-faced Ibis
Photo: jubileej, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

White-faced Ibises reach New Mexico in late March, are common by early April, peak in late April (5.2% of checklists), and most are gone by late May.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 22-31late March
Common byApr 1-7early April
PeakApr 22-30late April
Most gone byMay 22-31late May

Best: late April. First arrivals late March; most are gone by late May. Peak: on about 5.2% of New Mexico checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 11827 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 9370 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 9561 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 12707 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 9365 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 10141 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 12431 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 9159 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.2% of 9348 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 9704 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 9896 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 14679 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.2% of 11145 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.8% of 11939 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.0% of 12885 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.4% of 17935 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.1% of 15202 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.4% of 16604 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.0% of 12720 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.5% of 16699 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.8% of 9889 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 9322 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.5% of 8341 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.5% of 10562 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.6% of 9036 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.6% of 8461 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.6% of 8585 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.2% of 11800 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.6% of 8289 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.5% of 8882 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.4% of 9136 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.5% of 12662 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.3% of 9936 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.8% of 9581 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.9% of 9355 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.1% of 12402 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.6% of 9467 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.7% of 10279 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.7% of 8990 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.4% of 11986 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 8461 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.2% of 8801 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.5% of 8616 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 11088 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 8444 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 8575 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 10958 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 14523 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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Socorro CountyBest late April · 1290 checklists that week, 33,508 in all25%
  2. Valencia CountyBest late April · 394 checklists that week, 8,351 in all17%
  3. Dona Ana CountyBest the second week of September · 569 checklists that week, 29,776 in all14%
  4. Chaves CountyBest the second week of September · 93 checklists that week, 5,298 in all13%
  5. Curry CountyBest the second week of September · 95 checklists that week, 2,926 in all13%
  6. De Baca CountyBest the second week of May · 201 checklists that week, 2,203 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (southeast 2)Socorro County, best early May · 33 checklists that week, 965 in all74%
  2. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (east)Socorro County, best mid April · 61 checklists that week, 586 in all72%
  3. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (east)Socorro County, best late April · 140 checklists that week, 1,984 in all62%
  4. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (south 2)Socorro County, best mid May · 26 checklists that week, 853 in all62%
  5. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (southeast)Socorro County, best early May · 42 checklists that week, 1,305 in all60%

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

Best time of day

In New Mexico, the White-faced Ibis is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (2.8% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (186) to judge1 am: too few checklists (180) to judge2 am: too few checklists (172) to judge3 am: too few checklists (183) to judge4 am: too few checklists (527) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4013) to judge6 am: 2.2% of 29677 checklists7 am: 1.3% of 71785 checklists8 am: 1.5% of 79208 checklists9 am: 1.2% of 61605 checklists10 am: 1.4% of 49588 checklists11 am: 1.4% of 38079 checklists12 pm: 1.3% of 31089 checklists1 pm: 1.5% of 27524 checklists2 pm: 1.5% of 26644 checklists3 pm: 1.4% of 26849 checklists4 pm: 1.5% of 25156 checklists5 pm: 2.4% of 19061 checklists6 pm: 3.4% of 15112 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (9040) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2738) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (736) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (384) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.2%0.1%0.3%0.9%
April2.2%3.8%5.0%5.4%
May5.1%3.4%2.0%1.5%
June0.8%0.5%0.5%0.5%
July0.6%0.6%0.6%1.2%
August1.6%2.5%2.4%3.5%
September3.3%3.8%3.9%3.1%
October2.6%1.7%0.7%0.4%
November0.4%0.2%0.5%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Arizona: arrives mid March, 1 week earlier than New Mexico
  • Colorado: arrives the second week of April, 2 weeks later than New Mexico
  • Utah: arrives early April, 1 week later than New Mexico
  • Oklahoma: arrives late July, 16 weeks later than New Mexico

Common questions

When do White-faced Ibises arrive in New Mexico?
White-faced Ibises reach New Mexico in late March, are common by early April, peak in late April (5.2% of checklists), and most are gone by late May.
When do White-faced Ibises leave New Mexico?
Most White-faced Ibises have left New Mexico by late May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early June.
When is the best time to see a White-faced Ibis in New Mexico?
The White-faced Ibis is reported most often in late April, on about 5.2% of New Mexico checklists.
Where in New Mexico are White-faced Ibises seen most often?
By county, Socorro County, Valencia County, and Dona Ana County have the highest peak reporting rates for the White-faced Ibis (counties with at least 200 checklists).