WhenToBird

Aix sponsa · Anatidae

When Do Wood Ducks Arrive in Washington?

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

Wood Ducks are in Washington all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid March, peak in mid April (7.9% of checklists), and fall back by mid October. In the quietest week (mid December) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 15-21mid March
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Fall back byOct 15-21mid October
FewestDec 15-21mid December

Best: mid April. Here all year; numbers build from mid March and fall back by mid October. Peak: on about 7.9% of Washington checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 3.0% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.7% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.8% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.9% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.9% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.4% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.8% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.4% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.8% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.9% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.7% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 6.9% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 7.6% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 8.1% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 7.5% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 8.1% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 8.0% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 7.4% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 7.5% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 7.4% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.9% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.4% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.8% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 5.5% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.6% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.2% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.4% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.0% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.0% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 6.4% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.7% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.2% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 7.6% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 6.8% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.3% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 7.8% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 7.0% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.1% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.6% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.8% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.3% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.0% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.8% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.5% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.0% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.7% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.4% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.8% 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. Clark CountyBest mid May · 1328 checklists that week, 53,250 in all31%
  2. Pend Oreille CountyBest the second week of April · 44 checklists that week, 3,664 in all28%
  3. Benton CountyBest late September · 433 checklists that week, 23,565 in all22%
  4. Cowlitz CountyBest mid April · 336 checklists that week, 15,273 in all21%
  5. Thurston CountyBest late April · 2187 checklists that week, 68,352 in all18%
  6. Asotin CountyBest the second week of April · 77 checklists that week, 4,316 in all17%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Eloika LakeSpokane County, best late August · 20 checklists that week, 497 in all98%
  2. Juanita Bay ParkKing County, best the second week of August · 116 checklists that week, 6,576 in all96%
  3. Quigley LakeClark County, best the second week of April · 124 checklists that week, 6,702 in all91%
  4. Washington State Department of Natural Resources (WADNR) State Resource Management Area (southwest)Thurston County, best the second week of May · 40 checklists that week, 960 in all91%
  5. Twin Ponds ParkKing County, best the second week of October · 28 checklists that week, 1,421 in all89%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Wood Duck is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (8.1% of those checklists).

0%5%10%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: 9.2% of 56744 checklists7 am: 7.7% of 133294 checklists8 am: 6.7% of 184196 checklists9 am: 5.9% of 186303 checklists10 am: 5.1% of 177063 checklists11 am: 4.4% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 4.2% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 4.4% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 4.7% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 4.8% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 5.2% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 5.9% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 6.1% 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
January3.0%2.7%2.8%2.9%
February2.9%2.4%2.8%3.4%
March3.8%4.9%5.7%6.9%
April7.6%8.1%7.5%8.1%
May8.0%7.4%7.5%7.4%
June6.9%6.4%5.8%5.5%
July5.6%5.2%5.4%6.0%
August6.0%6.4%6.7%7.2%
September7.6%6.8%7.3%7.8%
October7.0%6.1%5.6%4.8%
November4.3%4.0%3.8%3.5%
December3.0%2.7%2.4%2.8%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives mid July, 16 weeks later than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives mid October, 20 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Montana: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Washington
  • Nevada: arrives mid July, 16 weeks later than Washington

Common questions

When do Wood Ducks arrive in Washington?
Wood Ducks are in Washington all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid March, peak in mid April (7.9% of checklists), and fall back by mid October. In the quietest week (mid December) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.
When do Wood Ducks leave Washington?
Wood Ducks never fully leave Washington: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid October, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.7% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Wood Duck in Washington?
The Wood Duck is reported most often in mid April, on about 7.9% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Wood Ducks seen most often?
By county, Clark County, Pend Oreille County, and Benton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Wood Duck (counties with at least 200 checklists).