Walk in the Park - August 30 (Pickering Bluffs)

[Shortsighted]

This morning the sun was brilliant and in my eyes upon travelling to the park. When I got there and parked, then walked over to the cedars the light intensity had already diminished to a dull glow. Why? That infernal cloud bank again. This time however there were other more sinister clouds threatening. The cedars had a few warbler way up near the top and a few more on an adjacent single cedar that was completely in shade. I waited a while for further developments. It was not nearly as cold as yesterday (16 degrees vs 13 degrees the day before). Nothing much changed so I curtailed my cedaring activities and moved eastward. Not much to hear, or to see until I reached the small wooded area. Still no mosquito menace. At around the middle of the short woodland trail there were warbler sounds and I looked up to make visual confirmation. So that's where you guys are hanging around! The problem is the lack of light and the twig and branch entanglement. I removed my TC and shot with the straight 300mm. Even then, wide open at f4, (not much depth-of-field) and the ISO had to be cranked to 1600. Rats!

Sightings were few and photos were fewer still:  Lots of juvenile Robins / juvenile Magnolia / juvenile Common yellowthroat / American Redstart / Ovenbird / Gray Catbird / Swainson's thrush / juvenile Chestnut-sided / Red-bellied woodpecker / Downy woodpecker x 2 / juvenile Cape May / juvenile Yellow-rumped


Catbird


Ovenbird


Swainson's thrush


American Redstart

[Ally]

Loving that Ovenbird!!

[Shortsighted]

I'll take an ovenbird any day. I saw it a couple of days before today's sighting, seen suddenly after having spooked it while taking the woodland trail, which is only about 150 meters long. I usually take a few steps and then stop to look around and listen. When I started moving again it flew across the path from the bluff side to the woods between my trail and the main paved waterfront trail situation still farther behind the woods. Thankfully that heavily-used thoroughfare is not visible from the woodland trail even though it's just a stones-throw away from where I was standing. I took a few more steps and looked left and there was the ovenbird sitting on a limb of fallen wood in utter gloom. I had the TC attached to my 300mm and there was no way that combo was going to autofocus on that little bird perched in the darkness. I suppose that I could have switched off the AF and done it manually but I have a black sock over my lens and the manual focusing ring is near the front where the sock is secured. Not convenient. I saw it again today and got a few shots but all at high ISO and without the TC's added magnification. It was located in almost the same spot, or at least within ten feet of it.
Tonight will be cool and the north wind is brisk. That means that either the current warblers will tackle the lake tonight and there will be nothing to see in the morning, or a new crop of warblers will have arrived, stop at the lakefront and feed in preparation for the next aggressive north wind to come along. So, tomorrow morning will either be great, or a bust. I can't wait!