WhenToBird

Troglodytes hiemalis · Troglodytidae

When Do Winter Wrens Arrive in Wisconsin?

Adult Winter Wren
Photo: Derek Spencer, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Winter Wrens are winter birds in Wisconsin: they arrive in mid September, peak in the second week of October (5.1% of checklists), and most are gone by late December.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Most gone byDec 22-31late December

Best: the second week of October. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by late December. Peak: on about 5.1% of Wisconsin checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.7% of 27925 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.4% of 18337 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.4% of 17370 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.4% of 23777 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.5% of 16656 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.3% of 18286 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.2% of 24739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.3% of 20113 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.2% of 24024 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.2% of 26722 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 27238 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.0% of 40171 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.7% of 34961 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.4% of 39128 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.3% of 38887 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.9% of 57231 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.9% of 55115 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.3% of 63098 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.4% of 49821 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.1% of 56796 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.1% of 33621 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.3% of 31282 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.8% of 30186 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.9% of 35128 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.2% of 27088 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.9% of 23293 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.4% of 20933 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.2% of 27595 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.7% of 19147 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 18286 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 19195 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.2% of 28229 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 22408 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.4% of 20857 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.7% of 20707 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.8% of 26469 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.6% of 21069 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.9% of 21011 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.9% of 20006 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.5% of 26362 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.6% of 18928 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.4% of 17052 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 16291 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.1% of 20564 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 15354 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.8% of 16294 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.1% of 21430 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.7% of 26314 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 Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Menominee CountyBest the second week of July · 55 checklists that week, 745 in all19%
  2. Dunn CountyBest the second week of October · 117 checklists that week, 8,247 in all19%
  3. Racine CountyBest the second week of October · 255 checklists that week, 18,400 in all15%
  4. Milwaukee CountyBest the second week of October · 1858 checklists that week, 114,667 in all15%
  5. Forest CountyBest late June · 437 checklists that week, 7,461 in all14%
  6. Iron CountyBest late June · 254 checklists that week, 5,981 in all13%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. South Shore of Lake Superior Fish and Wildlife Area - Pikes Creek UnitBayfield County, best early May · 25 checklists that week, 414 in all60%
  2. Warnimont ParkMilwaukee County, best mid October · 23 checklists that week, 2,226 in all59%
  3. Baxter's HollowSauk County, best the second week of April · 32 checklists that week, 1,009 in all58%
  4. Sheboygan Indian Mound ParkSheboygan County, best the second week of April · 20 checklists that week, 839 in all55%
  5. Donges Bay GorgeOzaukee County, best the second week of April · 29 checklists that week, 200 in all54%
  6. Schlitz Audubon CenterMilwaukee County, best the second week of October · 100 checklists that week, 4,351 in all54%

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

Best time of day

In Wisconsin, the Winter Wren is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (2.6% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (993) to judge1 am: too few checklists (844) to judge2 am: too few checklists (839) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1488) to judge4 am: too few checklists (5344) to judge5 am: 3.1% of 27016 checklists6 am: 2.5% of 83973 checklists7 am: 2.2% of 160717 checklists8 am: 2.0% of 160531 checklists9 am: 1.7% of 136968 checklists10 am: 1.5% of 119110 checklists11 am: 1.3% of 99116 checklists12 pm: 1.0% of 85078 checklists1 pm: 1.1% of 80688 checklists2 pm: 1.0% of 79140 checklists3 pm: 1.0% of 78599 checklists4 pm: 1.0% of 69767 checklists5 pm: 0.8% of 53229 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 38769 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24396) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (10155) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4990) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2463) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1281) 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%0.4%0.4%0.4%
February0.5%0.3%0.2%0.3%
March0.2%0.2%0.3%1.0%
April2.7%3.4%3.3%2.9%
May1.9%1.3%1.4%1.1%
June1.1%1.3%1.8%1.9%
July2.2%1.9%1.4%1.2%
August0.7%0.3%0.1%0.2%
September0.3%0.4%0.7%2.8%
October4.6%5.9%4.9%2.5%
November1.6%1.4%1.1%1.1%
December0.7%0.8%1.1%0.7%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: arrives mid September, in the same week than Wisconsin
  • Iowa: arrives mid September, in the same week than Wisconsin
  • Michigan: arrives mid September, in the same week than Wisconsin
  • Minnesota: arrives mid September, in the same week than Wisconsin

Common questions

When do Winter Wrens arrive in Wisconsin?
Winter Wrens are winter birds in Wisconsin: they arrive in mid September, peak in the second week of October (5.1% of checklists), and most are gone by late December.
When do Winter Wrens leave Wisconsin?
Most Winter Wrens have left Wisconsin by late December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Winter Wren in Wisconsin?
The Winter Wren is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 5.1% of Wisconsin checklists.
Where in Wisconsin are Winter Wrens seen most often?
By county, Menominee County, Dunn County, and Racine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Winter Wren (counties with at least 200 checklists).