Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Sora (Porzana carolina)

Abundance: Very Uncommon (at least 33 records in 11 counties, 3 in Kentucky and 8 in Tennessee).

Status: Transient during spring (20 records, one of which falls in early June) and fall (12 records); occasional Summer Visitor (2 records, one of which probably pertains to a late migrant); specimens.

Regional High Count: 2 (several records below).

Information on Records: 

13 April 1966 (1--specimen) Putnam County, Tennessee (Biology Department Collection, Tennessee Technological University), presumably obtained in that county.

7 or 8 May 1966 (1) Cumberland County, Tennessee (TOS members; Anonymous 1966a), a Spring Bird Count sighting.

8 September 1976 (1--roadkill) Pickett County, Tennessee (observer[s] unspecified; Nicholson 1981).

3 & 16 April 1980 (1) Somerset, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Jackie B. Elmore, Sr.; Stamm 1980c).

12 April 1983 (1) Somerset Reservoir, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Jackie B. Elmore, Sr. [JBE notes]).

16 & 25 April 1987 (1) Somerset Reservoir, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Jackie B. Elmore, Sr.; Stamm 1987c).

1-2, 7-9, & 26-27 May 1989 (1--heard only) City Lake, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman; Stedman 1993).

23 September 1990 (1--roadkill) Monterey Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman; Stedman 1993), specimen to Biology Department at Tennessee Tech University.

16/17 October 1990 (1--tower kill) WGRB tower 6.5 km north of Columbia, Adair County, Kentucky (Jackie B. Elmore, Sr.; Elmore and Palmer-Ball 1991).

10 October 1992 (1--seen) TRW Pond, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 1993).

8-27 September 1999 (1-2) Twin Lakes, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Busroe 2000a).

12 September 1999 (1) Warren County, Tennessee (Mac McWhirter; Fekel 2000).

26 April 2002 (1) Pumphouse Pond, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Busroe 2002c).

16 May 2003 (1--seen) Hackworth Farm on Rt. 62, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data). 

19 September 2003 (1--seen) Toad Rd., DeKalb County, Tennessee (Eddie Fuson fide Judy C. Fuson).

5 May 2004 (1--seen) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

13 May 2004 (1) Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

25 September 2004 (1--seen and heard) Heritage Marsh, White County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs unpubl. data).

6 November 2004 (1--seen and heard) Heritage Marsh, White County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs unpubl. data).

8/19 April/7 May 2005 (2--1 seen and 1 heard only/1--heard only/1 seen) Heritage Marsh, White County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs/Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs/Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs, Joseph Mast unpubl. data), includes a Spring Bird Count record.

30 April 2005 (2--seen and heard) Fall Creek Falls State Resort Park, Van Buren County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs, Edmund K. LeGrand unpubl. data).

3 May 2005 (1 seen) Ano strip mines, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

5 June 2005 (1--seen) Stop 29, Oliver Springs BBS, near Wartburg, Morgan County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data), a Breeding Bird Survey record.

21 May 2006 (1) east of Mayland, Cumberland County, Tennessee (Joseph E. Mast unpubl. data).

4 May 2007 (1--heard) Pumphrey Farm, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton, C. Gay Hodges unpubl. data).

15 September 2007 (1--road-killed) Mason Grissom Rd., Warren County, Tennessee (Mac McWhirter, Susan N. McWhirter unpubl. data).

8 October 2007 (1) Dry Creek Unit, Barren River Reservoir Wildlife Management Area, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer unpubl. data).

10 May 2008 (2) Burks Farm, eastern Putnam County, Tennessee (Joseph E. Mast et al. unpubl. data), a Spring Bird Count record.

17 May 2008 (1--calling in response to recorded call) c. 5 km southwest of Sparta, White County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data), a Spring Bird Count record.

1 October 2008 (1--sick or injured adult) Phifer Mt. Rd. area, Putnam County, Tennessee (fide Timothy R. Riddle unpubl. data; photos obtained by unnamed observer).

16 April 2009 (1--calling in response to recorded call) Judge Austin Rd., White County, Tennessee (Douglas A. Downs unpubl. data).

2 May 2009 (1--calling unsolicited) Rhea Rd., Cumberland County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data), a Spring Bird Count record.

Out-of-Season Records: 

25 June-22 July 1963 (1) 6 km southwest of Glasgow, Barren County, Kentucky (Marquita Gillenwater; Gillenwater 1964; Wilson 1969; Palmer-Ball 2003).

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Spring: 3 April 1980 (1; Pulaski County, Kentucky; Jackie B. Elmore, Sr.; Stamm 1980c)-5 June 2005 (1; near Wartburg, Morgan County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

    Fall: 8 September 1976 (1--roadkill; Pickett County, Tennessee; observers unspecified; Nicholson 1981) and 8 September 1999 (1-2; Pulaski County, Kentucky; Roseanna M. Denton; Busroe 2000a)-6 November 2004 (1; White County, Tennesse; Stephen J. Stedman, Douglas A. Downs unpubl. data).

Breeding: The summer record (see Out-of-Season Records above) suggests the possibility of breeding but remains the only Regional evidence to that effect.

Habitat: Wettish, overgrown fields; wetlands of a wide variety; sometimes other, atypical, sites (e.g., hedgerows, roadside ditches, etc.) during migration.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: No registrations.

Remarks: Quite secretive and often overlooked, so probably more common than the abundance classification provided above indicates.

Counties with Observations (boldfaced):

To see a map (Figure 1) displaying the data in the table above, click on the boldfaced word in this sentence.

Literature Cited