Continuing clear skies and another day of glorious sunshine ahead. Without an insulating layer of cloud, temperatures dropped to 1.5°c overnight. Frost still remains in pockets of shade, but the morning’s warm sunshine has already melted much of it to dew.
I head out towards the lighthouse, through the patches of Gorse decorated with golden blooms, and treading past the remaining dead stems of Wild Carrot from last season. A scattering of grey feathers indicate a Woodpigeon demise – probably predated by a Peregrine or a Fox.
A steeper descent into the gully which is filled with scrub; Blackthorn, Hawthorn, and Bramble all providing a safe thicket for the birds which will soon be nesting within. I listen to tweets from Chaffinch and Robin, a Stonechat ‘chip chip’, also the buzz of a Wren. Loud caws from a Crow on the telegraph wires above, and the harsher croaks from a passing Raven.
More beautiful Gorse blooms surround Tilly Whim. I walk along the clifftop enjoying the usual seabirds – Guillemot, Razorbill, Fulmar, and Herring Gull.
I find myself collecting a fair amount of litter left by an abundance of visitors enjoying the views over the weekend. One unusual find, a Common Whelk eggcase (type of sea snail), could be easily mistaken for a ball of bubblewrap. More often found on the beach, but here, having blown up over the 40m tall cliffs.
Fresh sprigs of Wild Garlic carpet the forest floor at Sunnydale. The green leaves poking up through the leaf litter and lending its distinctive scent to the air. Similar larger leaves represent the earlier Wild Arum, which will develop into arrow shapes instead.
In the tall Sycamore above the glade, the noisy Rooks have reassembled the rookery. Having nested here for the first time last year, I hadn’t seen them over winter, so it’s nice to see them return.
A sure sign of Spring – the drills from a Greater Spotted-Woodpecker echo all around.