WhenToBird

Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus · Icteridae

When Do Yellow-headed Blackbirds Arrive in Colorado?

Adult male Yellow-headed Blackbird
Photo: Ellen Eiriksson, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Yellow-headed Blackbirds arrive in Colorado in early April, peak in late April (7.0% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 1-7early April
Common byApr 1-7early April
PeakApr 22-30late April
Most gone bySep 22-30late September

Best: late April. First arrivals early April; most are gone by late September. Peak: on about 7.0% of Colorado checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 32254 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 23278 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 22933 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 30856 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 21464 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 22910 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 28739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.2% of 21833 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 23066 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.2% of 23783 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 24797 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.7% of 38439 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.5% of 31676 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.5% of 35092 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.0% of 36778 checklistsApr 22-30: 7.4% of 50885 checklistsMay 1-7: 7.5% of 44186 checklistsMay 8-14: 6.0% of 49011 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.3% of 40784 checklistsMay 22-31: 4.9% of 53073 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.7% of 32432 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.6% of 29978 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.5% of 29457 checklistsJun 22-30: 3.5% of 36072 checklistsJul 1-7: 3.2% of 28857 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.6% of 27224 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.9% of 27629 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.3% of 37318 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.8% of 25893 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.3% of 24870 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.5% of 24035 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.1% of 35691 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.4% of 27068 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.1% of 26709 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.7% of 26098 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.8% of 31550 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.9% of 24110 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.4% of 23352 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 21895 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 28319 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 21698 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 21061 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 19855 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 25798 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 18626 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 19004 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 23103 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 30802 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 Colorado 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 Colorado

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Rio Grande CountyBest the second week of June · 94 checklists that week, 4,655 in all36%
  2. Saguache CountyBest late April · 100 checklists that week, 3,220 in all36%
  3. Crowley CountyBest mid July · 10 checklists that week, 1,883 in all34%
  4. Jackson CountyBest late May · 281 checklists that week, 7,472 in all33%
  5. Washington CountyBest the second week of July · 12 checklists that week, 2,511 in all32%
  6. Prowers CountyBest mid April · 372 checklists that week, 11,307 in all28%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jim Hamm Nature PreserveBoulder County, best late May · 39 checklists that week, 1,349 in all99%
  2. Monte Vista National Wildlife RefugeRio Grande County, best late June · 28 checklists that week, 1,219 in all97%
  3. Cattail PondLarimer County, best the second week of May · 25 checklists that week, 866 in all96%
  4. Russell LakesSaguache County, best mid June · 25 checklists that week, 853 in all94%
  5. Case Reservoir Number 2Jackson County, best mid June · 30 checklists that week, 474 in all93%

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

Best time of day

In Colorado, the Yellow-headed Blackbird is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (3.5% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (512) to judge1 am: too few checklists (468) to judge2 am: too few checklists (513) to judge3 am: too few checklists (656) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1918) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16045) to judge6 am: 4.3% of 71991 checklists7 am: 2.8% of 159189 checklists8 am: 2.4% of 177206 checklists9 am: 2.1% of 165269 checklists10 am: 1.9% of 141029 checklists11 am: 1.9% of 115283 checklists12 pm: 1.7% of 96068 checklists1 pm: 1.9% of 89512 checklists2 pm: 1.9% of 86319 checklists3 pm: 2.0% of 82496 checklists4 pm: 2.6% of 71648 checklists5 pm: 3.3% of 52445 checklists6 pm: 3.7% of 40199 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24246) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7986) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2004) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (888) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (450) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
March0.1%0.2%0.3%0.7%
April1.5%3.5%6.0%7.4%
May7.5%6.0%5.3%4.9%
June4.7%3.6%3.5%3.5%
July3.2%2.6%2.9%2.3%
August1.8%2.3%2.5%3.1%
September3.4%3.1%2.7%1.8%
October0.9%0.4%0.3%0.2%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: arrives early April, in the same week than Colorado
  • New Mexico: arrives early July, 12 weeks later than Colorado
  • Utah: arrives the second week of March, 3 weeks earlier than Colorado
  • Nebraska: arrives mid March, 2 weeks earlier than Colorado

Common questions

When do Yellow-headed Blackbirds arrive in Colorado?
Yellow-headed Blackbirds arrive in Colorado in early April, peak in late April (7.0% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.
When do Yellow-headed Blackbirds leave Colorado?
Most Yellow-headed Blackbirds have left Colorado by late September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early October.
When is the best time to see a Yellow-headed Blackbird in Colorado?
The Yellow-headed Blackbird is reported most often in late April, on about 7.0% of Colorado checklists.
Where in Colorado are Yellow-headed Blackbirds seen most often?
By county, Rio Grande County, Saguache County, and Crowley County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Yellow-headed Blackbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).