Even with the clocks pushed back, the birds at Durlston are well awake by 8am: Robins and Great tits chirp through repetition of their songs, whilst Goldfinch jingle overhead.
I head down through the Lighthouse gate, where Holm Oak branches overhang, forming a tunnel along the road. Here the fruit trees are in flower; white blossoms on the Apple, and buds swelling upon the Cherry. Blackbirds use the tunnel to quickly navigate to another part of the hedge; they burst into the open, and swoop down through, before diving into cover once again.
Walking out onto the downs, the landscape is sodden and shaded below thick grey cloud. However, looking closely at the scrub, the damp branches have began to brighten: White flowers appear ready to burst open across the Blackthorn, and new leaves developing on Elder, Bramble, Dogrose, Honeysuckle, and Old Mans Beard. Further down the slope, a Greenfinch wheezes from atop a small Hawthorn tree.
My stroll continue down towards the bridge, where I watch two Skylarks playing together another on the wing. They spin around one another as they ascend, before dropping down low, and repeat. The birds begin to sing, but then take cover when a pair of Peregrines soar past. Wings still and outstretched, they silently glide past in formation like a pair of stealth bombers.
Traversing back across the side of the Gully lined with Dog-Violet and Daisies, I find an Oil Beetle and empty Brown-lipped Snail shell. Last night I watched the latest Grasslands episode of Attenborough’s Wild Isles (again -highly recommended!) so I find myself wondering if the snail fell victim to one of the park’s Glow Worm larvae, or has since been used as a nest for a Red-tailed Mason Bee.
On my return to the office, I spot a Gannet passing out to sea, and a quick glance in the moth trap reveals a good number of Hebrew Character.