With the sunlight squeezing out between the carpet of grey clouds, shafts of bright orange and yellow were being produced, one was spotlighting the berries of Stinking Iris, making the pods of orange spheres particularly bright and vivid.
As I wandered off to check that the Hereford Cattle were in the right place and looking well – they were – the jinking movement of a Sparrowhawk made me stop and stare. The wide wings showing as this brownish bird altered direction, followed by a flap, flap and a glide. Sadly for me, it then disappeared over the hedgerow and out of sight.
Swallows swooping about in the blustery wind, along with fewer Sand and House Martins than of late, as they are moving southwards towards their wintering grounds.
In the middle of the meadow a Roe Deer was stood, the sun spotlighting her tan fur, as I watched she bounded off into the woods.
Above me Pied Wagtails were flying, their long -tails and bobbing movement, along with the calling making them easy to identify. Alongside a flock of Meadow Pipits and what sounded like Siskins.
Down through the Pleasure Grounds, were the paths have withstood the rain downpour early this morning, a Chiffchaff was calling, a constant chiff-chaff-chiff-chaff-chiff, accompanying me.
A quick monitor of one of our small landslips, but my attention was captured instead by a Buzzard, the dark brown wings catching my eye before it landed on a dead tree, allowing me to admire it as it perched.
The leaves of some out the trees are turning to their autumnal colours, with Horse Chestnut the most brown, while Ash and English Oaks are still mostly green, Sycamore are in between a mixture of both colours, while one of the London Planes is bereft of leaves.