On one of the last warm days of November in southeast Michigan, the Greater Yellowlegs feeding in the shallow waters of Washago Pond at Willow Metropark was a pleasant surprise for me this weekend.
And when I reported my sighting of the bird on eBird, it was flagged as a rare find for this time of the year.
I visited the pond because another birder reported finding a Cackling Goose, which I found as well.
Along with about 300 Canada Geese, almost two dozen Mallards, a couple Hooded Mergansers, and another surprise this late in the season: Yellow-rumped Warblers.
But I wasn’t expecting to find any shorebirds.
Most shorebirds migrated south earlier this season with only a few sightings this month of Greater Yellowlegs and Dunlins in our area.
Greater Yellowlegs are common throughout the United States during migration.
They spend their winter along the southern coastline on both east and west U.S. coasts as well as Central America and the Caribbean.
With the drop in temperature last night and the snow showers we had all day today through mid-afternoon, I hope the Greater Yellowlegs found a warmer location overnight.
