WhenToBird

Hylocichla mustelina · Turdidae

When Do Wood Thrushes Arrive in New York?

Adult Wood Thrush
Photo: Helen J, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Wood Thrushes reach New York in late April, are common by early May, peak in mid May (20% of checklists), and most are gone by mid July.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 22-30late April
Common byMay 1-7early May
PeakMay 15-21mid May
Most gone byJul 15-21mid July

Best: mid May. First arrivals late April; most are gone by mid July. Peak: on about 20% of New York checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.9% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 15% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 21% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 23% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 17% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 14% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 15% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 15% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 12% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 10% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.9% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.6% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.1% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.8% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.4% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.8% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.4% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.2% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.7% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.5% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 62470 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 New York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tioga CountyBest early July · 426 checklists that week, 21,713 in all37%
  2. Dutchess CountyBest mid May · 2543 checklists that week, 76,123 in all36%
  3. Columbia CountyBest mid May · 939 checklists that week, 28,454 in all36%
  4. Orleans CountyBest mid May · 847 checklists that week, 16,706 in all32%
  5. Cortland CountyBest late June · 445 checklists that week, 10,206 in all31%
  6. Genesee CountyBest mid May · 937 checklists that week, 17,726 in all30%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clinton ReservoirOneida County, best early July · 21 checklists that week, 324 in all95%
  2. Van KeurensDutchess County, best the second week of May · 27 checklists that week, 780 in all93%
  3. Whiskey HollowOnondaga County, best the second week of June · 24 checklists that week, 430 in all92%
  4. Railroad PondWestchester County, best late May · 23 checklists that week, 458 in all92%
  5. Henry Hudson Town ParkAlbany County, best late June · 32 checklists that week, 1,477 in all91%
  6. McKinney PondDutchess County, best mid May · 46 checklists that week, 317 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Wood Thrush is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (9.9% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 14% of 124869 checklists7 am: 8.4% of 298506 checklists8 am: 6.3% of 337334 checklists9 am: 5.0% of 307787 checklists10 am: 4.1% of 270801 checklists11 am: 3.2% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 2.7% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 2.5% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 2.3% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 2.4% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 3.0% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 4.8% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 6.8% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0%0%0.1%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0.1%0.1%0.1%2.9%
May15%21%23%17%
June14%14%15%15%
July15%12%10%6.9%
August3.6%2.1%1.8%2.4%
September2.8%3.4%3.2%2.7%
October1.5%0.6%0.2%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives late April, in the same week than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives mid April, 1 week earlier than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives mid April, 1 week earlier than New York
  • Vermont: arrives late April, in the same week than New York

Common questions

When do Wood Thrushes arrive in New York?
Wood Thrushes reach New York in late April, are common by early May, peak in mid May (20% of checklists), and most are gone by mid July.
When do Wood Thrushes leave New York?
Most Wood Thrushes have left New York by mid July, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early October.
When is the best time to see a Wood Thrush in New York?
The Wood Thrush is reported most often in mid May, on about 20% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Wood Thrushes seen most often?
By county, Tioga County, Dutchess County, and Columbia County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Wood Thrush (counties with at least 200 checklists).