WhenToBird

Porzana carolina · Rallidae

When Do Soras Arrive in California?

Adult Sora
Photo: Dario Taraborelli, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Soras are winter birds in California: they arrive in mid August, peak in the second week of November (2.8% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 15-21mid August
Common byAug 15-21mid August
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: the second week of November. First arrivals mid August; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 2.8% of California checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

Darker months: more checklists report it. Outlined: peak month.

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 2.1% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.1% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.9% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.8% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.6% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.6% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.3% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.5% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.6% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.6% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.6% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.5% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.7% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.5% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.5% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.0% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.7% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.5% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.3% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.3% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.3% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.3% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.3% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.3% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.3% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.3% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.5% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.7% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.0% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.3% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.8% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.0% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.1% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.2% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.5% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.6% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.6% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.7% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.8% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.8% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.9% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.7% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.7% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.3% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.2% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.0% of 124993 checklistsJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Share of complete checklists reporting it, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted.

Frequency is the share of complete checklists in California that listed the bird, 2016–2025. It is not a head count, and it follows where and when people go birding. How to read it.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
today
Second week of November

Each county is shaded by the share of complete checklists there that listed the bird, blended with the weeks either side. Darker is more often. It follows where people watch birds, not how many birds there are. How to read it.

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Where in California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Napa CountyBest the second week of November · 324 checklists that week, 18,976 in all17%
  2. Imperial CountyBest the second week of November · 446 checklists that week, 24,551 in all13%
  3. Merced CountyBest early December · 282 checklists that week, 13,095 in all13%
  4. Solano CountyBest the second week of November · 435 checklists that week, 25,325 in all11%
  5. Lassen CountyBest early September · 188 checklists that week, 8,378 in all10%
  6. Sutter CountyBest late October · 127 checklists that week, 4,996 in all10%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Piute PondsLos Angeles County, best the second week of September · 34 checklists that week, 1,269 in all91%
  2. Oso Flaco LakeSan Luis Obispo County, best the second week of October · 53 checklists that week, 2,699 in all76%
  3. Wetlands Edge Trail HeadNapa County, best mid October · 21 checklists that week, 1,367 in all66%
  4. San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge (Ingram Creek)Stanislaus County, best late November · 23 checklists that week, 292 in all65%
  5. San Jacinto Wildlife AreaRiverside County, best mid September · 62 checklists that week, 2,774 in all64%

Busy spots report more of everything; compare the checklist counts before you drive anywhere.

Best time of day

In California, the Sora is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (2.0% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 1.9% of 186053 checklists7 am: 2.1% of 444086 checklists8 am: 2.0% of 535846 checklists9 am: 1.7% of 486061 checklists10 am: 1.5% of 411130 checklists11 am: 1.4% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 1.3% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 1.3% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 1.3% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 1.2% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 1.2% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 1.0% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) to judge12a3a6a9a12p3p6p9p
Share of checklists started in each local hour that reported it. It reflects when people go birding as well as when birds are active. Grey hours have too few checklists (under 2% of the state’s, or under 200) to judge.
Week-by-week table
MonthDays 1-78-1415-2122-end
January2.1%2.1%1.9%1.8%
February1.6%1.6%1.3%1.5%
March1.6%1.6%1.6%1.5%
April1.7%1.5%1.5%1.0%
May0.7%0.5%0.3%0.3%
June0.3%0.3%0.3%0.3%
July0.3%0.3%0.3%0.3%
August0.5%0.7%1.0%1.3%
September1.8%2.0%2.1%2.2%
October2.5%2.6%2.6%2.7%
November2.8%2.8%2.9%2.7%
December2.7%2.3%2.2%2.0%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives the second week of July, 5 weeks earlier than California
  • Utah: arrives mid April, 16 weeks earlier than California
  • Arizona: arrives late July, 3 weeks earlier than California
  • Oregon: arrives early April, 18 weeks earlier than California

Common questions

When do Soras arrive in California?
Soras are winter birds in California: they arrive in mid August, peak in the second week of November (2.8% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do Soras leave California?
Most Soras have left California by late April, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Sora in California?
The Sora is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 2.8% of California checklists.
Where in California are Soras seen most often?
By county, Napa County, Imperial County, and Merced County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Sora (counties with at least 200 checklists).