WhenToBird

Zenaida asiatica · Columbidae

When Do White-winged Doves Arrive in Colorado?

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

The White-winged Dove is in Colorado all year. It turns up on about 1.1% of checklists at its peak (the second week of December) and on 0.6% in its quietest week (early October).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekDec 8-14the second week of December
Quietest weekOct 1-7early October

Best: the second week of December. Here all year. Peak: on about 1.1% of Colorado checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 1.1% of 32254 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.0% of 23278 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.0% of 22933 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.8% of 30856 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.0% of 21464 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.0% of 22910 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.9% of 28739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.9% of 21833 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 23066 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.9% of 23783 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.7% of 24797 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 38439 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.8% of 31676 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 35092 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.8% of 36778 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 50885 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.0% of 44186 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.9% of 49011 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.9% of 40784 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.9% of 53073 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.8% of 32432 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.6% of 29978 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.7% of 29457 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.7% of 36072 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 28857 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.8% of 27224 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.8% of 27629 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 37318 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.8% of 25893 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.7% of 24870 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.7% of 24035 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 35691 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.7% of 27068 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.6% of 26709 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.7% of 26098 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.5% of 31550 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.6% of 24110 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 23352 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.7% of 21895 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 28319 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.6% of 21698 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.8% of 21061 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.0% of 19855 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.9% of 25798 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.2% of 18626 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 19004 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.1% of 23103 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.1% of 30802 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 Colorado 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 Colorado

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Otero CountyBest early November · 42 checklists that week, 4,404 in all19%
  2. Prowers CountyBest early November · 149 checklists that week, 11,307 in all16%
  3. Baca CountyBest early August · 25 checklists that week, 3,209 in all14%
  4. Fremont CountyBest mid July · 220 checklists that week, 15,522 in all13%
  5. Pueblo CountyBest early August · 221 checklists that week, 26,547 in all10%
  6. Montezuma CountyBest mid January · 191 checklists that week, 15,992 in all6.7%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Pueblo State Park (Trustees Pueblo WW Reservoir Number 2)Pueblo County, best mid March · 28 checklists that week, 694 in all47%
  2. City Park (Southside Reservoirs)Pueblo County, best the second week of December · 30 checklists that week, 1,611 in all42%
  3. Willow Creek ParkProwers County, best early May · 45 checklists that week, 174 in all25%
  4. Cattail PondLarimer County, best mid January · 29 checklists that week, 866 in all19%
  5. NorwoodSan Miguel County, best late December · 35 checklists that week, 1,247 in all18%

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

Best time of day

In Colorado, the White-winged Dove is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (1.1% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (512) to judge1 am: too few checklists (468) to judge2 am: too few checklists (513) to judge3 am: too few checklists (656) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1918) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16045) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 71991 checklists7 am: 1.0% of 159189 checklists8 am: 1.2% of 177206 checklists9 am: 1.0% of 165269 checklists10 am: 0.6% of 141029 checklists11 am: 0.5% of 115283 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 96068 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 89512 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 86319 checklists3 pm: 1.0% of 82496 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 71648 checklists5 pm: 0.8% of 52445 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 40199 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24246) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7986) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2004) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (888) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (450) 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
January1.1%1.0%1.0%0.8%
February1.0%1.0%0.9%0.9%
March0.9%0.9%0.7%0.9%
April0.8%0.8%0.8%0.8%
May1.0%0.9%0.9%0.9%
June0.8%0.6%0.7%0.7%
July0.8%0.8%0.8%0.8%
August0.8%0.7%0.7%0.6%
September0.7%0.6%0.7%0.5%
October0.6%0.7%0.7%0.8%
November0.6%0.8%1.0%0.9%
December1.2%1.1%1.1%1.1%

Neighboring states

  • New Mexico: year-round, peaks mid April
  • Utah: year-round, peaks early May
  • Kansas: summer visitor, peaks mid July
  • Oklahoma: all year, most in summer, peaks mid July

Common questions

When do White-winged Doves arrive in Colorado?
The White-winged Dove is in Colorado all year. It turns up on about 1.1% of checklists at its peak (the second week of December) and on 0.6% in its quietest week (early October).
When do White-winged Doves leave Colorado?
The White-winged Dove does not leave Colorado: it is reported all year, from 0.6% of checklists in early October to 1.1% in the second week of December.
When is the best time to see a White-winged Dove in Colorado?
The White-winged Dove is reported most often in the second week of December, on about 1.1% of Colorado checklists.
Where in Colorado are White-winged Doves seen most often?
By county, Otero County, Prowers County, and Baca County have the highest peak reporting rates for the White-winged Dove (counties with at least 200 checklists).