WhenToBird

Setophaga coronata · Parulidae

When Do Yellow-rumped Warblers Arrive in Tennessee?

Adult Yellow-rumped Warbler
Photo: Jonathan Eisen, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Yellow-rumped Warblers are winter birds in Tennessee: the first arrive in late September, they are common by the second week of October, peak in late October (35% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 22-30late September
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakOct 22-31late October
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: late October. First arrivals late September; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 35% of Tennessee checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 22% of 16696 checklistsJan 8-14: 22% of 13056 checklistsJan 15-21: 21% of 13646 checklistsJan 22-31: 25% of 18071 checklistsFeb 1-7: 27% of 13342 checklistsFeb 8-14: 24% of 14316 checklistsFeb 15-21: 23% of 20395 checklistsFeb 22-28: 26% of 13129 checklistsMar 1-7: 27% of 12701 checklistsMar 8-14: 27% of 12789 checklistsMar 15-21: 28% of 13599 checklistsMar 22-31: 29% of 20293 checklistsApr 1-7: 30% of 15779 checklistsApr 8-14: 29% of 16646 checklistsApr 15-21: 29% of 18625 checklistsApr 22-30: 25% of 26689 checklistsMay 1-7: 14% of 21054 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.5% of 19954 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 14494 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 17790 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 11344 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 11049 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 9625 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 11522 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 9208 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 8814 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 8887 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 12739 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 9632 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 9514 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 9619 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 14227 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 11988 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 11660 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.4% of 11774 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.8% of 15658 checklistsOct 1-7: 11% of 12641 checklistsOct 8-14: 24% of 12389 checklistsOct 15-21: 33% of 10249 checklistsOct 22-31: 36% of 14085 checklistsNov 1-7: 36% of 10700 checklistsNov 8-14: 32% of 10709 checklistsNov 15-21: 29% of 9955 checklistsNov 22-30: 27% of 13423 checklistsDec 1-7: 26% of 10106 checklistsDec 8-14: 28% of 10478 checklistsDec 15-21: 28% of 12177 checklistsDec 22-31: 26% of 17397 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tipton CountyBest late November · 17 checklists that week, 1,603 in all88%
  2. Houston CountyBest mid April · 21 checklists that week, 1,234 in all80%
  3. DeKalb CountyBest early December · 15 checklists that week, 2,539 in all73%
  4. Giles CountyBest early November · 11 checklists that week, 803 in all67%
  5. Campbell CountyBest late October · 85 checklists that week, 3,619 in all66%
  6. Perry CountyBest early November · 61 checklists that week, 3,047 in all66%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Boatyard ParkSullivan County, best early February · 22 checklists that week, 139 in all97%
  2. Walker Springs ParkKnox County, best mid December · 24 checklists that week, 1,326 in all93%
  3. Radnor LakeDavidson County, best early April · 267 checklists that week, 9,438 in all92%
  4. Cove LakeCampbell County, best late October · 42 checklists that week, 1,319 in all91%
  5. Reedy CreekSullivan County, best early February · 27 checklists that week, 384 in all91%
  6. Penal Farm Lake Number Three (Penal Farm Lake Number Two)Shelby County, best mid April · 36 checklists that week, 851 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In Tennessee, the Yellow-rumped Warbler is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (20% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (224) to judge1 am: too few checklists (253) to judge2 am: too few checklists (245) to judge3 am: too few checklists (267) to judge4 am: too few checklists (582) to judge5 am: too few checklists (5688) to judge6 am: 17% of 36828 checklists7 am: 21% of 72816 checklists8 am: 20% of 76910 checklists9 am: 19% of 69071 checklists10 am: 18% of 60943 checklists11 am: 18% of 52311 checklists12 pm: 18% of 46524 checklists1 pm: 17% of 41133 checklists2 pm: 18% of 40305 checklists3 pm: 19% of 41013 checklists4 pm: 16% of 40029 checklists5 pm: 11% of 29775 checklists6 pm: 6.9% of 20977 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (12529) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4456) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1056) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (445) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (252) 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
January22%22%21%25%
February27%24%23%26%
March27%27%28%29%
April30%29%29%25%
May14%5.5%0.6%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0%0%0.1%0.1%
August0%0%0%0.1%
September0.1%0.2%0.4%2.8%
October11%24%33%36%
November36%32%29%27%
December26%28%28%26%

Neighboring states

  • Kentucky: arrives mid September, 1 week earlier than Tennessee
  • Georgia: arrives the second week of October, 2 weeks later than Tennessee
  • Alabama: arrives the second week of October, 2 weeks later than Tennessee
  • Indiana: arrives early September, 3 weeks earlier than Tennessee

Common questions

When do Yellow-rumped Warblers arrive in Tennessee?
Yellow-rumped Warblers are winter birds in Tennessee: the first arrive in late September, they are common by the second week of October, peak in late October (35% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Yellow-rumped Warblers leave Tennessee?
Most Yellow-rumped Warblers have left Tennessee by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of May.
When is the best time to see a Yellow-rumped Warbler in Tennessee?
The Yellow-rumped Warbler is reported most often in late October, on about 35% of Tennessee checklists.
Where in Tennessee are Yellow-rumped Warblers seen most often?
By county, Tipton County, Houston County, and DeKalb County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Yellow-rumped Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).