When Do Birds Migrate North?

Michigan is the home to over 400 species of birds. This includes birds that are here only in the winter, year-round, only in the spring and summer, and those that pass through Michigan to reach nesting ground further north and wintering ground further south.

Birds of Michigan by Ted Black is a good book to have around if you’re unsure of a bird’s timetable. It includes a range map and the status for each species in an average year.

You can also click here to view an earlier blog with informative websites. Below is a list of the most frequently asked about birds and their migratory arrivals and departures:

Bluebirds are year round in mid-Michigan and can begin scouting out possible nesting sites as early as January.
Robins are year round in mid-Michigan but you’ll see them more frequently in your yard~mid-February
Red Winged Blackbirds ~ Beginning of March
Sandhill Crane ~ March
Turkey Vulture ~ late March
Ruby-throated Hummingbird ~ April 15 (tax time)
Purple Martin ~ Mid April
White-crowned Sparrow & White-throated Sparrow~ pass through mid-Michigan from mid-April to late May. White-crowned is usually a week behind the White-Throated.
House wren ~ end of April
Baltimore Oriole ~ beginning in May
Warblers ~mid-May
Canada Goose ~ are year round in mid-Michigan shifting to nesting grounds March to May
Wood Duck ~ Mid-March
Tundra Swan ~ Not a Michigan resident. Migrates through late Feb. to mid-April.
Dark eyed Junco ~ leaves mid-MI end of May
Red-breasted Nuthatch ~ leaves mid-MI in May