So Durlston had frost, albeit in sheltered shaded patches only. Lots of icy puddles with one water trough having a skin of 2cm thick ice! It was noticeably still with visibility such that St. Catherine’s Head could be clearly seen upon the Isle of Wight. Today gave the coldest temperatures so far this year.
A pair of Carrion Crows called beside the Small Copse. In Saxon I heard Blackbirds, Herring Gulls, a Green Woodpecker, and a Cock Pheasant. A slither of moon remained in the sky. Fronds of collapsed dry Bracken were at my ankles. The freeze made walking easier where squelchy mud had gone hard but into Ox Eye, I took car upon a frozen gateway puddle. I admired the beginnings of a wall rebuild which had elements of diagonal and horizontal course to marry up. Slots of a Roe Deer in bare clay would last for a while. From a Sycamore in Saxons frozen soggy corner, came the “peep, peep” of a Blue Tit. I then saw the male Pheasant that was upon the east end of the coastal ridge. Now peering above the cloud on the horizon the sun cast sunlight that was reflected upon the sea as a beam that reached the gully mouth.
I was delighted to find our electric fence intact. Upon the sea cliffs a half dozen Guillemot perched upon the sloping boulder; such was the cave occupancy. I scanned the 50 or so seabird in the raft, just beyond the cliff foot froth. Some gargled as other dabbled duck-like. Still no Razorbills, however, I was delighted to see one Fulmar in semi-circle flight. A score of Jackdaws added to the cliff face action. A Wren trilled nearby.
I recalled the fact that the basal rosettes of, mostly likely Early Spider Orchids, were upon the Lighthouse Green. Meanwhile, Daffodil heads had formed and blades of Three-Cornered Leek were out at the castle