Doomed Sora 2021-2022 1/6/2022

 

  Last Wednesday Dave Dister called and reported that Joe Moloney had spotted an out-of-season Sora at Cartier Park.  Soras are rails and their diet consists of seeds from wetland plants and occasionally aquatic invertebrates. Since we received 4" of snow on Wednesday and another 6" in the predawn of Thursday both of those food sources were about to become much harder to come by.  

  I made it out there Thursday morning and located the bird in the place that Dave described.  It shuffled through the snow covered leaf debris in a struggle to find food.

  

   I noticed it occasionally stopping to swallow some food.  It was only after I checked my photos and heard from Brian Brosky it became apparent that all the bird was finding was stringy algae.  Not enough to sustain it to migrate to warmer climes. 

    The bird was not seen after Thursday.