WhenToBird

Empidonax traillii · Tyrannidae

When Do Willow Flycatchers Arrive in Montana?

Adult Willow Flycatcher
Photo: Steven Smethurst, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Willow Flycatchers reach Montana in mid May, are common by late May, peak in mid June (11% of checklists), and most are gone by mid August.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 15-21mid May
Common byMay 22-31late May
PeakJun 15-21mid June
Most gone byAug 15-21mid August

Best: mid June. First arrivals mid May; most are gone by mid August. Peak: on about 11% of Montana checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octnot usually seen
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0% of 7987 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 5561 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 5613 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 7881 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 5018 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 5598 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 7247 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 5531 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 6110 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 6623 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 7687 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 11095 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 7774 checklistsApr 8-14: 0% of 8785 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 9684 checklistsApr 22-30: 0% of 13805 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 11847 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 13547 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 13019 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.6% of 20456 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.1% of 12993 checklistsJun 8-14: 10% of 11594 checklistsJun 15-21: 11% of 11159 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 13786 checklistsJul 1-7: 7.8% of 9584 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.3% of 9078 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.5% of 7905 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.1% of 10906 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.2% of 7335 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.6% of 6868 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.2% of 6866 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.0% of 10076 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.2% of 7670 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.6% of 7490 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 6804 checklistsSep 22-30: 0% of 8016 checklistsOct 1-7: 0% of 5996 checklistsOct 8-14: 0% of 6156 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 5742 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 7790 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 5353 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 5475 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 4603 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 6067 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 4362 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 4467 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 5328 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 6672 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 Montana 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 Montana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Deer Lodge CountyBest mid June · 218 checklists that week, 8,732 in all42%
  2. Granite CountyBest the second week of June · 73 checklists that week, 1,737 in all25%
  3. Powell CountyBest mid June · 146 checklists that week, 5,305 in all25%
  4. Lake CountyBest mid June · 448 checklists that week, 19,478 in all19%
  5. Silver Bow CountyBest mid June · 64 checklists that week, 3,051 in all19%
  6. Lincoln CountyBest mid June · 186 checklists that week, 5,543 in all18%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Warm Springs Wildlife Management Area (05N10W24ABBC01 Spring)Deer Lodge County, best late July · 35 checklists that week, 564 in all68%
  2. Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge (northeast)Ravalli County, best mid June · 23 checklists that week, 838 in all61%
  3. Pablo ReservoirLake County, best the second week of June · 23 checklists that week, 791 in all56%
  4. Smith LakeFlathead County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 210 in all53%

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

Best time of day

In Montana, the Willow Flycatcher is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (5.6% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (183) to judge1 am: too few checklists (169) to judge2 am: too few checklists (163) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (503) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4022) to judge6 am: 7.5% of 12719 checklists7 am: 4.9% of 31202 checklists8 am: 3.4% of 47646 checklists9 am: 2.8% of 44624 checklists10 am: 2.5% of 40704 checklists11 am: 1.9% of 33825 checklists12 pm: 1.5% of 29407 checklists1 pm: 1.3% of 27959 checklists2 pm: 1.0% of 26928 checklists3 pm: 1.1% of 25313 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 22151 checklists5 pm: 1.2% of 16884 checklists6 pm: 1.6% of 13780 checklists7 pm: 1.9% of 9926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5765) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2099) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (595) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (230) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0%0%0%0%
May0.1%0.2%0.6%2.6%
June8.1%10%11%11%
July7.8%6.3%6.5%7.1%
August6.2%4.6%3.2%3.0%
September1.2%0.6%0.1%0%
October0%0%0%0%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Idaho: arrives mid May, in the same week than Montana
  • Wyoming: arrives mid May, in the same week than Montana
  • Utah: arrives mid May, in the same week than Montana
  • Washington: arrives mid May, in the same week than Montana

Common questions

When do Willow Flycatchers arrive in Montana?
Willow Flycatchers reach Montana in mid May, are common by late May, peak in mid June (11% of checklists), and most are gone by mid August.
When do Willow Flycatchers leave Montana?
Most Willow Flycatchers have left Montana by mid August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early September.
When is the best time to see a Willow Flycatcher in Montana?
The Willow Flycatcher is reported most often in mid June, on about 11% of Montana checklists.
Where in Montana are Willow Flycatchers seen most often?
By county, Deer Lodge County, Granite County, and Powell County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Willow Flycatcher (counties with at least 200 checklists).