WhenToBird

Birding spot · Ravalli County, Montana

Birding at Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge (southwest): What You'll See Each Week

In November, the birds most often reported at Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge (southwest) are Black-capped Chickadee (85%), Black-billed Magpie (78%), and White-breasted Nuthatch (70%). It is busiest in summer, when 81 species turn up on at least 1 in 20 checklists, and species counts peak in the second week of June (96 species). 156 species have been reported here across 873 complete checklists from 437 birders.

Species by week

020406080100Jan 1-7: 44 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsJan 8-14: low data (6 checklists)Jan 15-21: 41 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsJan 22-31: 48 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsFeb 1-7: 42 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsFeb 8-14: low data (8 checklists)Feb 15-21: 39 species on 5%+ of 11 checklistsFeb 22-28: 40 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsMar 1-7: 45 species on 5%+ of 25 checklistsMar 8-14: 39 species on 5%+ of 21 checklistsMar 15-21: 49 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsMar 22-31: 60 species on 5%+ of 37 checklistsApr 1-7: 58 species on 5%+ of 18 checklistsApr 8-14: 55 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsApr 15-21: 60 species on 5%+ of 41 checklistsApr 22-30: 64 species on 5%+ of 34 checklistsMay 1-7: 65 species on 5%+ of 32 checklistsMay 8-14: 69 species on 5%+ of 41 checklistsMay 15-21: 79 species on 5%+ of 25 checklistsMay 22-31: 73 species on 5%+ of 49 checklistsJun 1-7: 76 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsJun 8-14: 96 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsJun 15-21: 87 species on 5%+ of 27 checklistsJun 22-30: 73 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsJul 1-7: 66 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsJul 8-14: 76 species on 5%+ of 10 checklistsJul 15-21: low data (9 checklists)Jul 22-31: 64 species on 5%+ of 19 checklistsAug 1-7: 76 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsAug 8-14: 61 species on 5%+ of 21 checklistsAug 15-21: 66 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsAug 22-31: 72 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsSep 1-7: 79 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsSep 8-14: 83 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsSep 15-21: 85 species on 5%+ of 18 checklistsSep 22-30: low data (9 checklists)Oct 1-7: 46 species on 5%+ of 11 checklistsOct 8-14: 52 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsOct 15-21: 41 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsOct 22-31: 51 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsNov 1-7: low data (9 checklists)Nov 8-14: 53 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsNov 15-21: low data (7 checklists)Nov 22-30: low data (9 checklists)Dec 1-7: low data (4 checklists)Dec 8-14: low data (8 checklists)Dec 15-21: low data (6 checklists)Dec 22-31: low data (9 checklists)JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
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. 1Black-capped Chickadee85%
  2. 2Black-billed Magpie78%
  3. 3White-breasted Nuthatch70%
  4. 4Northern Flicker65%
  5. 5Red-breasted Nuthatch63%
  6. 6Belted Kingfisher60%
  7. 7Downy Woodpecker57%
  8. 8Mallard50%
  9. 9Great Blue Heron38%
  10. 10Brown Creeper35%
  11. 11Red-tailed Hawk33%
  12. 12Common Raven30%
  13. 13Bald Eagle28%
  14. 14Canada Goose25%
  15. 15Hairy Woodpecker25%

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

Winter 42 species

  1. Black-billed Magpie82%
  2. Black-capped Chickadee73%
  3. Mallard62%
  4. Northern Flicker54%
  5. White-breasted Nuthatch52%

Spring 74 species

  1. Northern Flicker77%
  2. Black-billed Magpie72%
  3. Canada Goose72%
  4. American Robin71%
  5. Black-capped Chickadee71%

Summer 81 species

  1. American Robin80%
  2. Northern Yellow Warbler77%
  3. Eastern Kingbird75%
  4. Western Wood-Pewee74%
  5. Northern Flicker74%

Fall 68 species

  1. Black-capped Chickadee76%
  2. Black-billed Magpie70%
  3. Northern Flicker70%
  4. White-breasted Nuthatch59%
  5. Red-breasted Nuthatch50%

Specialties

Birds reported far more often here than across Montana.

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.