WhenToBird

Meleagris gallopavo · Phasianidae

When Do Wild Turkeys Arrive in Nevada?

Adult male Wild Turkey
Photo: Dan Vickers, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Wild Turkeys arrive in Nevada in late February, peak in late August (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 22-28late February
Common byFeb 22-28late February
PeakAug 22-31late August
Most gone byNov 1-7early November

Best: late August. First arrivals late February; most are gone by early November. Peak: on about 1.2% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.2% of 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.2% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.4% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.3% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.2% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.3% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.5% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.5% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.5% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.5% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.7% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.0% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.7% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.7% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.1% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.8% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.8% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.7% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.8% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.6% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.1% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.0% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.4% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.0% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.4% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.2% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.0% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.8% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.0% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.9% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.9% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.7% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.4% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.4% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.4% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.3% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.4% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.4% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.4% of 5101 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 Nevada 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 Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pershing CountyBest the second week of January · 11 checklists that week, 1,407 in all32%
  2. Lander CountyBest late September · 32 checklists that week, 1,413 in all28%
  3. White Pine CountyBest early March · 39 checklists that week, 5,465 in all16%
  4. Humboldt CountyBest early March · 32 checklists that week, 2,523 in all9.1%
  5. Lyon CountyBest early August · 47 checklists that week, 3,229 in all6.3%
  6. Lincoln CountyBest early July · 33 checklists that week, 3,842 in all4.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Swamp SpringClark County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 383 in all71%
  2. Rye Patch ReservoirPershing County, best the second week of September · 24 checklists that week, 366 in all57%
  3. Great Basin National Park (South Fork Baker Creek)White Pine County, best early June · 21 checklists that week, 174 in all23%
  4. Brown LakeWhite Pine County, best early August · 30 checklists that week, 231 in all12%
  5. Rose Memorial ParkLincoln County, best early September · 21 checklists that week, 673 in all3.6%
  6. Humboldt National ForestElko County, best late July · 21 checklists that week, 165 in all2.8%

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

Best time of day

In Nevada, the Wild Turkey is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (1.5% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 3.1% of 4313 checklists6 am: 1.2% of 17070 checklists7 am: 0.8% of 27389 checklists8 am: 0.7% of 24858 checklists9 am: 0.4% of 22012 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 19284 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 0.5% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 0.3% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 0.6% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 0.9% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 1.0% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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
January0.2%0.2%0.4%0.3%
February0.1%0.2%0.3%0.5%
March0.5%0.5%0.4%0.5%
April0.7%0.8%0.7%1.0%
May0.7%0.7%1.1%0.8%
June0.8%0.8%0.7%0.8%
July0.6%0.7%1.1%1.0%
August1.4%1.0%1.1%1.4%
September1.2%1.0%0.8%1.0%
October0.9%0.9%0.7%0.7%
November0.4%0.4%0.4%0.4%
December0.3%0.4%0.4%0.4%

Neighboring states

  • California: arrives early February, 3 weeks earlier than Nevada
  • Utah: year-round, peaks mid April
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks mid April
  • Arizona: arrives mid December, 9 weeks earlier than Nevada

Common questions

When do Wild Turkeys arrive in Nevada?
Wild Turkeys arrive in Nevada in late February, peak in late August (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.
When do Wild Turkeys leave Nevada?
Most Wild Turkeys have left Nevada by early November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Wild Turkey in Nevada?
The Wild Turkey is reported most often in late August, on about 1.2% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Wild Turkeys seen most often?
By county, Pershing County, Lander County, and White Pine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Wild Turkey (counties with at least 200 checklists).