WhenToBird

Meleagris gallopavo · Phasianidae

When Do Wild Turkeys Arrive in Washington?

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

The Wild Turkey is in Washington all year. It turns up on about 1.4% of checklists at its peak (late April) and on 0.6% in its quietest week (late November).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekApr 22-30late April
Quietest weekNov 22-30late November

Best: late April. Here all year. Peak: on about 1.4% of Washington checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.7% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.6% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.6% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.6% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.6% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.7% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.7% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.7% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.6% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.8% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.1% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.3% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.3% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.4% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.4% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.3% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.3% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.3% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.2% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.1% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.0% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.9% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.8% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.9% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.9% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.9% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.9% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.0% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.1% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.0% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.1% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.9% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.9% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.8% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.8% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.7% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.7% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.6% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.6% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.7% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.8% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.7% 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. Pend Oreille CountyBest early February · 17 checklists that week, 3,664 in all36%
  2. Adams CountyBest mid September · 81 checklists that week, 4,574 in all30%
  3. Columbia CountyBest the second week of April · 30 checklists that week, 1,894 in all22%
  4. Stevens CountyBest the second week of August · 97 checklists that week, 7,596 in all21%
  5. Ferry CountyBest late April · 150 checklists that week, 5,106 in all18%
  6. Spokane CountyBest late April · 1479 checklists that week, 43,379 in all15%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Whitman Mission National Historic SiteWalla Walla County, best early April · 28 checklists that week, 1,992 in all75%
  2. Bassett ParkAdams County, best mid September · 36 checklists that week, 556 in all69%
  3. SacajaweaFranklin County, best late December · 20 checklists that week, 420 in all58%
  4. Riverside (southeast)Spokane County, best late April · 28 checklists that week, 658 in all54%
  5. Eloika LakeSpokane County, best late September · 20 checklists that week, 497 in all54%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Wild Turkey is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.6% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%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: 2.2% of 56744 checklists7 am: 1.3% of 133294 checklists8 am: 1.0% of 184196 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 186303 checklists10 am: 0.7% of 177063 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 0.7% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 0.7% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 1.0% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 1.2% 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
January0.7%0.6%0.6%0.6%
February0.6%0.7%0.7%0.7%
March0.7%0.6%0.8%0.9%
April1.1%1.3%1.3%1.4%
May1.4%1.3%1.3%1.3%
June1.2%1.1%1.0%0.9%
July0.8%0.8%0.9%0.8%
August0.9%0.9%0.9%1.0%
September1.1%1.0%1.1%0.9%
October0.9%0.8%0.8%0.7%
November0.7%0.7%0.6%0.6%
December0.6%0.7%0.8%0.7%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: summer visitor, peaks the second week of April
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks mid April
  • Montana: summer visitor, peaks the second week of April
  • Nevada: summer visitor, peaks late August

Common questions

When do Wild Turkeys arrive in Washington?
The Wild Turkey is in Washington all year. It turns up on about 1.4% of checklists at its peak (late April) and on 0.6% in its quietest week (late November).
When do Wild Turkeys leave Washington?
The Wild Turkey does not leave Washington: it is reported all year, from 0.6% of checklists in late November to 1.4% in late April.
When is the best time to see a Wild Turkey in Washington?
The Wild Turkey is reported most often in late April, on about 1.4% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Wild Turkeys seen most often?
By county, Pend Oreille County, Adams County, and Columbia County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Wild Turkey (counties with at least 200 checklists).