A cool night last night, dropping to 3.5 degrees, followed by a still and bright morning, with a dramatic sky full of torn and rippled cloud, from steel grey to bright gold.
There is a palpable feeling of excitement along the cliffs, as breeding season draws closer! Fulmars sweep through the air in smooth arcs, almost brushing the cliff-face as they hurtle by on stiff wings, as tiny brown Rock Pipits dart about the rocks below.
On the water, unusually, Razorbills outnumber the Guillemots this morning, with 20 bobbing on the gently lapping waves, in their smart black and white breeding plumage, ‘billing’, preening and growling softly to each other. 14 Guillemots scattered around them, their dark brown feathers contrasting with the Razorbills when seen side by side.
Shags carry beak-fulls of twigs and seaweed to build or repair their scruffy nests, with a pair of male Kestrels zooming by in a high speed chase just below the clifftop.
The first spring flowers are starting to appear, with a fine scattering of Primroses on Caravan Terrace and Snowdrops, Spring Crocuses and Daffodils in the woodland. On the downs, Whitlow Grass is starting to bloom, with catkins appearing on Hazel and Sallow.
As I entered the woodland, I was greeted by the drumming of a Great Spotted Woodpecker, somewhere in the canopy above me, with a glimpse of a Treecreeper spiraling up the trunk of a London Plane.
As I crossed Long Meadow, a Green Woodpecker bobbed by – it’s bouncy flight making it look as if it was hung from elastic, as Great Tits punched out their two-note call from the hedges.
Lovely to hear some snatches of song from Skylarks above the meadows, with the ‘cronk’ of a Raven also heard.
Returning to the Centre, a Buzzard gyres slowly high overhead.