WhenToBird

Anarhynchus wilsonia · Charadriidae

When Do Wilson's Plovers Arrive in Florida?

Adult Wilson's Plover
Photo: Melissa Meadows, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Wilson's Plovers reach Florida in late February, are common by early March, peak in late July (1.7% of checklists), and most are gone by late November.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 22-28late February
Common byMar 1-7early March
PeakJul 22-31late July
Most gone byNov 22-30late November

Best: late July. First arrivals late February; most are gone by late November. Peak: on about 1.7% of Florida checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.6% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.8% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.8% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.7% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.8% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.5% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.8% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.8% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.9% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.9% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.0% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.1% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.0% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.3% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.6% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.4% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.5% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.7% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.5% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.6% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.5% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.6% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.8% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.5% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.8% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.6% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.6% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.5% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.6% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.2% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.0% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.7% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.8% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.8% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.7% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.7% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.9% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.9% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.8% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.7% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.6% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.6% of 82405 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 Florida 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 Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. St. Johns CountyBest the second week of July · 570 checklists that week, 51,026 in all14%
  2. Gulf CountyBest mid June · 65 checklists that week, 5,038 in all9.1%
  3. Franklin CountyBest mid August · 190 checklists that week, 20,336 in all8.9%
  4. Lee CountyBest late July · 1165 checklists that week, 110,404 in all8.9%
  5. Dixie CountyBest mid June · 35 checklists that week, 2,113 in all8.4%
  6. Wakulla CountyBest late June · 273 checklists that week, 27,521 in all8.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Carlos PointLee County, best late June · 20 checklists that week, 567 in all87%
  2. Anastasia State Park (Conch Island)St. Johns County, best early July · 20 checklists that week, 267 in all82%
  3. Fort Matanzas National MonumentSt. Johns County, best mid June · 25 checklists that week, 872 in all75%
  4. Anastasia State ParkSt. Johns County, best late June · 60 checklists that week, 2,085 in all72%
  5. Tigertail Beach County ParkCollier County, best early December · 35 checklists that week, 2,414 in all70%

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

Best time of day

In Florida, the Wilson's Plover is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 1.2% of 94591 checklists7 am: 1.2% of 296183 checklists8 am: 1.2% of 319987 checklists9 am: 1.2% of 254830 checklists10 am: 1.0% of 209480 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 0.9% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 0.8% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 0.7% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) 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
January0.6%0.8%0.8%0.7%
February0.8%0.7%0.5%0.8%
March0.8%0.9%1.0%0.9%
April0.9%1.0%1.1%1.0%
May1.2%1.3%1.6%1.4%
June1.5%1.7%1.5%1.6%
July1.5%1.6%1.8%1.5%
August1.8%1.6%1.6%1.5%
September1.6%1.2%1.0%0.7%
October0.8%0.8%0.7%0.7%
November0.7%0.9%0.9%0.8%
December0.7%0.7%0.6%0.6%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives early March, 1 week later than Florida
  • Louisiana: arrives mid March, 3 weeks later than Florida
  • Texas: arrives the second week of March, 2 weeks later than Florida

Common questions

When do Wilson's Plovers arrive in Florida?
Wilson's Plovers reach Florida in late February, are common by early March, peak in late July (1.7% of checklists), and most are gone by late November.
When do Wilson's Plovers leave Florida?
Most Wilson's Plovers have left Florida by late November, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of December.
When is the best time to see a Wilson's Plover in Florida?
The Wilson's Plover is reported most often in late July, on about 1.7% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are Wilson's Plovers seen most often?
By county, St. Johns County, Gulf County, and Franklin County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Wilson's Plover (counties with at least 200 checklists).