Birding spot · Leelanau County, Michigan
Birding at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: What You'll See Each Week In November, the birds most often reported at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore are American Herring Gull (64%), Bonaparte's Gull (64%), and Ring-billed Gull (64%). It is busiest in spring, when 86 species turn up on at least 1 in 20 checklists, and species counts peak in the second week of May (93 species). 205 species have been reported here across 1,572 complete checklists from 501 birders.
Species by week 0 20 40 60 80 100 Jan 1-7: 25 species on 5%+ of 14 checklists Jan 8-14: 29 species on 5%+ of 14 checklists Jan 15-21: low data (7 checklists) Jan 22-31: 34 species on 5%+ of 15 checklists Feb 1-7: 29 species on 5%+ of 15 checklists Feb 8-14: 26 species on 5%+ of 10 checklists Feb 15-21: 30 species on 5%+ of 18 checklists Feb 22-28: low data (2 checklists) Mar 1-7: 34 species on 5%+ of 15 checklists Mar 8-14: 39 species on 5%+ of 16 checklists Mar 15-21: 43 species on 5%+ of 25 checklists Mar 22-31: 51 species on 5%+ of 19 checklists Apr 1-7: 60 species on 5%+ of 17 checklists Apr 8-14: 65 species on 5%+ of 34 checklists Apr 15-21: 55 species on 5%+ of 25 checklists Apr 22-30: 65 species on 5%+ of 30 checklists May 1-7: 78 species on 5%+ of 34 checklists May 8-14: 93 species on 5%+ of 40 checklists May 15-21: 93 species on 5%+ of 44 checklists May 22-31: 85 species on 5%+ of 90 checklists Jun 1-7: 68 species on 5%+ of 67 checklists Jun 8-14: 62 species on 5%+ of 57 checklists Jun 15-21: 62 species on 5%+ of 67 checklists Jun 22-30: 49 species on 5%+ of 61 checklists Jul 1-7: 53 species on 5%+ of 66 checklists Jul 8-14: 58 species on 5%+ of 68 checklists Jul 15-21: 56 species on 5%+ of 72 checklists Jul 22-31: 62 species on 5%+ of 71 checklists Aug 1-7: 61 species on 5%+ of 38 checklists Aug 8-14: 52 species on 5%+ of 43 checklists Aug 15-21: 50 species on 5%+ of 46 checklists Aug 22-31: 52 species on 5%+ of 57 checklists Sep 1-7: 42 species on 5%+ of 32 checklists Sep 8-14: 43 species on 5%+ of 42 checklists Sep 15-21: 42 species on 5%+ of 31 checklists Sep 22-30: 55 species on 5%+ of 36 checklists Oct 1-7: 40 species on 5%+ of 26 checklists Oct 8-14: 52 species on 5%+ of 48 checklists Oct 15-21: 54 species on 5%+ of 30 checklists Oct 22-31: 50 species on 5%+ of 39 checklists Nov 1-7: 41 species on 5%+ of 16 checklists Nov 8-14: 44 species on 5%+ of 17 checklists Nov 15-21: 35 species on 5%+ of 13 checklists Nov 22-30: 35 species on 5%+ of 15 checklists Dec 1-7: low data (9 checklists) Dec 8-14: low data (4 checklists) Dec 15-21: low data (6 checklists) Dec 22-31: 29 species on 5%+ of 11 checklists Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Number of species reported on at least 5% of complete checklists, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted. In November: what to expect 1 American Herring Gull 64% 2 Bonaparte's Gull 64% 3 Ring-billed Gull 64% 4 American Crow 59% 5 Horned Grebe 57% 6 Black-capped Chickadee 54% 7 Common Merganser 54% 8 Blue Jay 49% 9 Common Loon 48% 10 Long-tailed Duck 43% 11 White-winged Scoter 39% 12 Red-necked Grebe 38% 13 American Goldfinch 36% 14 Red-breasted Merganser 34% 15 Snow Bunting 28% Share of complete checklists at this spot that reported the bird in November. The sparkline is the whole year, with this month highlighted.
Season by season Specialties Birds reported far more often here than across Michigan.
Nearby spots Frequency is the share of complete checklists at this location that listed the bird, 2016–2025. Busy places report more of everything, and the weekly chart counts species on at least 5% of checklists so a few stray reports do not inflate it. How to read it .
American Herring Gull64%
Bonaparte's Gull64%
Ring-billed Gull64%
American Crow59%
Horned Grebe57%
Black-capped Chickadee54%
Common Merganser54%
Blue Jay49%
Common Loon48%
Long-tailed Duck43%
White-winged Scoter39%
Red-necked Grebe38%
American Goldfinch36%
Red-breasted Merganser34%
Snow Bunting28%