WhenToBird

Aix sponsa · Anatidae

When Do Wood Ducks Arrive in Massachusetts?

Adult male Wood Duck
Photo: Andrew Lai, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Wood Ducks reach Massachusetts in mid February, are common by early March, peak in early April (15% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 15-21mid February
Common byMar 1-7early March
PeakApr 1-7early April
Most gone byNov 1-7early November

Best: early April. First arrivals mid February; most are gone by early November. Peak: on about 15% of Massachusetts checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 0.7% of 43252 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.7% of 30096 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.8% of 28760 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.7% of 38135 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.7% of 26442 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 29034 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.0% of 37383 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.3% of 29977 checklistsMar 1-7: 6.1% of 29175 checklistsMar 8-14: 9.5% of 32399 checklistsMar 15-21: 12% of 34444 checklistsMar 22-31: 14% of 49126 checklistsApr 1-7: 15% of 36456 checklistsApr 8-14: 16% of 40908 checklistsApr 15-21: 14% of 42078 checklistsApr 22-30: 14% of 56465 checklistsMay 1-7: 12% of 56994 checklistsMay 8-14: 9.2% of 64079 checklistsMay 15-21: 8.1% of 52020 checklistsMay 22-31: 6.8% of 55402 checklistsJun 1-7: 5.9% of 30682 checklistsJun 8-14: 5.9% of 27557 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.3% of 26163 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.5% of 29576 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.6% of 23931 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.0% of 22389 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.6% of 22365 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.7% of 32631 checklistsAug 1-7: 9.2% of 25133 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.2% of 24610 checklistsAug 15-21: 9.6% of 25350 checklistsAug 22-31: 10% of 37198 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.7% of 27402 checklistsSep 8-14: 9.9% of 27700 checklistsSep 15-21: 9.9% of 28398 checklistsSep 22-30: 9.5% of 34646 checklistsOct 1-7: 9.8% of 28620 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.1% of 30144 checklistsOct 15-21: 8.7% of 28893 checklistsOct 22-31: 7.9% of 38869 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.7% of 29782 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.8% of 27582 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.6% of 26642 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.6% of 34390 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.4% of 25164 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 24892 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.7% of 29022 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.6% of 44323 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 Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hampden CountyBest late March · 1130 checklists that week, 35,410 in all34%
  2. Worcester CountyBest early April · 3098 checklists that week, 128,594 in all25%
  3. Berkshire CountyBest the second week of April · 2760 checklists that week, 92,890 in all21%
  4. Hampshire CountyBest late March · 4946 checklists that week, 162,423 in all21%
  5. Middlesex CountyBest late August · 6420 checklists that week, 307,511 in all20%
  6. Franklin CountyBest early April · 1307 checklists that week, 41,382 in all17%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hells KitchenFranklin County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 501 in all95%
  2. Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge (Longmeadow)Hampden County, best late July · 51 checklists that week, 2,119 in all95%
  3. Sears LandMiddlesex County, best late September · 26 checklists that week, 1,084 in all95%
  4. October Mountain State ForestBerkshire County, best the second week of September · 26 checklists that week, 473 in all94%
  5. Fannie Stebbins Memorial Wildlife RefugeHampden County, best the second week of September · 80 checklists that week, 4,030 in all93%

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

Best time of day

In Massachusetts, the Wood Duck is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (11% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (630) to judge1 am: too few checklists (657) to judge2 am: too few checklists (645) to judge3 am: too few checklists (850) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3787) to judge5 am: too few checklists (29743) to judge6 am: 13% of 108601 checklists7 am: 9.9% of 186104 checklists8 am: 7.8% of 185905 checklists9 am: 6.3% of 166049 checklists10 am: 5.3% of 150508 checklists11 am: 4.6% of 131024 checklists12 pm: 4.4% of 116804 checklists1 pm: 4.8% of 112055 checklists2 pm: 5.1% of 110246 checklists3 pm: 5.8% of 104376 checklists4 pm: 8.3% of 83736 checklists5 pm: 9.9% of 63723 checklists6 pm: 10% of 41435 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (21041) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5240) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1722) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1094) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (704) 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%0.7%0.8%0.7%
February0.7%0.7%1.0%3.3%
March6.1%9.5%12%14%
April15%16%14%14%
May12%9.2%8.1%6.8%
June5.9%5.9%6.3%6.5%
July6.6%7.0%7.6%8.7%
August9.2%9.2%9.6%10%
September9.7%9.9%9.9%9.5%
October9.8%9.1%8.7%7.9%
November5.7%3.8%2.6%1.6%
December1.4%1.1%0.7%0.6%

Neighboring states

  • Rhode Island: arrives mid February, in the same week than Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire: arrives late February, 1 week later than Massachusetts
  • Connecticut: arrives mid February, in the same week than Massachusetts
  • Vermont: arrives early March, 2 weeks later than Massachusetts

Common questions

When do Wood Ducks arrive in Massachusetts?
Wood Ducks reach Massachusetts in mid February, are common by early March, peak in early April (15% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.
When do Wood Ducks leave Massachusetts?
Most Wood Ducks have left Massachusetts by early 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 Wood Duck in Massachusetts?
The Wood Duck is reported most often in early April, on about 15% of Massachusetts checklists.
Where in Massachusetts are Wood Ducks seen most often?
By county, Hampden County, Worcester County, and Berkshire County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Wood Duck (counties with at least 200 checklists).