Just got my Mini 2 on Dec 4th and took it out for a quick test flight the day after. Great little drone for bird watching! I've tried doing this in the past with my P3S but it always scares the ducks away, this little drone is so quiet that they didn't seem to notice it. The 2x zoom is also a nice feature that seems to perform well.
Here's a short clip from the flight:
Remember to exercise caution around birds. Some birds attack drones. I have had no problems with my Mavic Air 2 from ducks.
But I had a group of crows circle the drone and get close like they were going to try to down it. Also, swans and geese are very aggressive I flee the area at park once as they would take off and go after it. In the fairness of disclosure the park has major problem with the swans and they have several dogs trained to work in pack to chase them off.
Also, Gerald the infamous Turkey gangster in Oakland reportedly attacked a drone and then it's operator when it landed. Gerald was a habitual attacker of people and an outlier who was recently relocated.
Most birds won't hit it, but it's a thing that can happen relatively easy. Just try not to bother them, specially near nests. You can use x4 zoom at 1080 resolution, it has much less quality but helps maintaining the distance.
Small birds think it's a predator... and predators think it's food. The drone is a bit noisy so hopefully that keep birds from touching it.
I got attacked by an eagle once, it came down from the sky and missed the hit, probably it realized Mini 2 was not food in the last moment.
Twice I got almost hit by a seagull (flying at the same altitude, I wouldn't consider them attacks).
Sometimes I get swarmed by starlings and get constantly bullied by them.
Once I flew with a hundred seagulls and they didn't even pay attention to the Mini 2.
Huginn Kenningar Posted at 12-6 15:30
Most birds won't hit it, but it's a thing that can happen relatively easy. Just try not to bother them, specially near nests. You can use x4 zoom at 1080 resolution, it has much less quality but helps maintaining the distance.
Small birds think it's a predator... and predators think it's food. The drone is a bit noisy so hopefully that keep birds from touching it.
nice vid but if i did that, i could see someone calling the police claiming i am harassing wildlife based on the hovering and the length of time. you say you do this frequently?
The Saint Posted at 12-7 18:02
nice vid but if i did that, i could see someone calling the police claiming i am harassing wildlife based on the hovering and the length of time. you say you do this frequently?
Well, I do live in a very rural area and the few neighbors I have are all familiar with my hobby.