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After the Provosts reported a Virginia Rail at TRP yesterday I decided to try my luck as well. I arrived at 8 AM, parked at the main parking but then walked the road down to the next area so that I could walk up along the backwater without having to peer into the Sun. I then took the north side field to the horse trail and back. I saw an odd bird with a brown back and a blue belly and figured out it was a non-breeding plumage Indigo Bunting. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen one like that. I heard the Virginia Rail right where the Provosts left it yesterday. Since I had been listing to the call, I recognized it right away. It was a year bird for me. At the horse trail, I saw a Sharp-shinned Hawk in a tree with some Blue Jays. To my entertainment, the jays decided to harass the hawk but he was not having any of it. He harassed them right back. Left the park at 10:07.

Species seen or heard:
• Great Egret
• Blue Jay
• American Crow
• Eastern Bluebird
• Carolina Chickadee
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Canada Goose
• Green Heron
• Blue-winged Teal
• Northern Cardinal
• Indigo Bunting
• Brown Thrasher
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Swamp Sparrow
• Wood Duck
• Gray Catbird
• Virginia Rail
• Mourning Dove
• Great Blue Heron
• American Kestrel
• Killdeer
• Loggerhead Shrike
• Eastern Meadowlark
• Northern Flicker
• Sharp-shinned Hawk
• Northern Mockingbird
• Tern sp.
• Turkey Vulture

After hearing that a Sora had been seen at the waterfowl protection area of Bell Slough on Thursday, I decided to go there today to see if I could add this to my life list. I arrived at 8:37 AM and walked the perimeter and back. I did hear a call that sounded like the sound of that bird but I did not actually see one. I did see a few first of season Swamp Sparrows and other birds. Left at 10 AM.

Species seen or heard:
• Great Egret
• Great Blue Heron
• Blue Jay
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Carolina Wren
• Belted Kingfisher
• Killdeer
• Double-crested Cormorant
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Carolina Chickadee
• Swamp Sparrow
• Eastern Phoebe

I arrived at the park at 8 AM and the weather was not looking good. Thunderstorms were slowly approaching from the west. I walked along the west side of the backwater and then the grassy field north of the trail and then the start of the horse trail before the rain was imminent and I decided to leave. Probably the highlight was two Gray Catbirds and a Sedge Wren. I had heard a catbird there last weekend but this time I got good looks at the two individuals. The Sedge Wren was neat, uncommon but not rare. I left the park at 9:45 AM.

Species seen or heard:
• Sedge Wren
• Gray Catbird
• American Crow
• Blue Jay
• Northern Mockingbird
• Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
• European Starling
• Red-shouldered Hawk
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Wood Duck
• Chipping Sparrow
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• American Coot
• Carolina Wren
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Northern Cardinal
• Mourning Dove
• Brown Thrasher
• Great Blue Heron
• Carolina Chickadee
• Northern Flicker