WhenToBird

Zenaida asiatica · Columbidae

When Do White-winged Doves Arrive in California?

Adult White-winged Dove
Photo: Ricard Busquets Reverte, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

White-winged Doves reach California in the second week of December, are common by mid January, peak in late April (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.

When to look

First arrivalsDec 8-14the second week of December
Common byJan 15-21mid January
PeakApr 22-30late April
Most gone bySep 8-14the second week of September

Best: late April. First arrivals the second week of December; most are gone by the second week of September. Peak: on about 1.2% of California checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.3% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.4% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.5% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.5% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.6% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.5% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.6% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.7% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.0% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.3% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.2% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.0% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.0% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.1% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.2% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.0% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.0% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.0% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.7% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.6% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.6% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.6% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.5% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.5% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.5% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.6% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.5% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.4% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.3% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.3% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.3% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.3% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.3% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.3% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.3% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.3% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.3% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.4% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.4% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Imperial CountyBest late May · 386 checklists that week, 24,551 in all48%
  2. Riverside CountyBest the second week of May · 2386 checklists that week, 113,541 in all12%
  3. San Bernardino CountyBest late April · 3085 checklists that week, 84,093 in all11%
  4. San Diego CountyBest mid March · 9546 checklists that week, 405,465 in all6.6%
  5. Kern CountyBest late June · 965 checklists that week, 47,774 in all3.2%
  6. Inyo CountyBest early June · 966 checklists that week, 35,713 in all1.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Palo Verde Ecological ReserveRiverside County, best the second week of July · 20 checklists that week, 740 in all100%
  2. Agua Caliente Regional ParkSan Diego County, best mid May · 22 checklists that week, 842 in all96%
  3. Rotary ParkImperial County, best early May · 22 checklists that week, 912 in all94%
  4. Coachella Valley PreserveRiverside County, best late May · 32 checklists that week, 1,584 in all86%

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

Best time of day

In California, the White-winged Dove is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.3% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 1.7% of 186053 checklists7 am: 1.1% of 444086 checklists8 am: 0.8% of 535846 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 486061 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 411130 checklists11 am: 0.3% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 0.4% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.4% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January0.3%0.4%0.5%0.5%
February0.6%0.5%0.6%0.7%
March0.9%1.0%1.3%1.2%
April1.0%1.0%1.1%1.2%
May1.2%1.0%1.0%1.0%
June0.7%0.7%0.6%0.6%
July0.6%0.7%0.6%0.6%
August0.5%0.5%0.5%0.5%
September0.6%0.5%0.4%0.3%
October0.3%0.3%0.3%0.3%
November0.3%0.3%0.3%0.3%
December0.3%0.3%0.4%0.4%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives mid April, 17 weeks later than California
  • Utah: year-round, peaks early May
  • Arizona: arrives early April, 15 weeks later than California
  • New Mexico: year-round, peaks mid April

Common questions

When do White-winged Doves arrive in California?
White-winged Doves reach California in the second week of December, are common by mid January, peak in late April (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.
When do White-winged Doves leave California?
Most White-winged Doves have left California by the second week of September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late September.
When is the best time to see a White-winged Dove in California?
The White-winged Dove is reported most often in late April, on about 1.2% of California checklists.
Where in California are White-winged Doves seen most often?
By county, Imperial County, Riverside County, and San Bernardino County have the highest peak reporting rates for the White-winged Dove (counties with at least 200 checklists).