70's in November - 08 Nov 2020

Its always hard to imaging seventy-degree weather in November, but here we are enjoying the 3rd consecutive day of warm temperatures. Its been wreaking havoc on the hawk watch, but the sunny skies and mild temperatures have made for some fall photography.

Some early morning sunlight in the yard was welcome. I opened the back window and got a few pics of the resident feeder birds.

Brownton Abbey, 26340 Higgins Way, Wayne, Michigan, US
Nov 8, 2020 9:30 AM - 10:00 AM
Protocol: Stationary
Checklist Comments:     70F! Sunny
5 species

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  2
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  1
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)  4
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  2
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)  3

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S160210316

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

I then took a ride down to Lake Erie Metropark to check out action at the Detroit River Hawk Watch. Things were very slow, so I practiced using the Sony 200-600 mm f5.6/6.3 lens on the a7RIV and 1.4TC on a monopod (the detachable leg from a Manfrotto BeFree 2in1 Tripod). 

Though a bit flimsy in terms of supporting the weight of the rig the monopod provided a huge improvement with stabilizing the camera/lens combo, especially when photographing a resident Ring-billed Gull that kept circling the canal in front of us. Tracking and autofocus were much smoother when the lens was supported and I was very happy w/ the results.

I only had a short time to hawk watch (no birds) so I headed back home. On the way out of the park a pair of Greater Yellowlegs were close enough for some pics from inside the car. Great to see shorebirds in November, as well!

Lake Erie Metropark, Wayne, Michigan, US
Nov 8, 2020 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
0.5 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     70F; Sunny
2 species

Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)  2
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S160210523

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)