The woodland is looking wonderful with a huge variety of shades of green as the new leaves on the trees have mostly now arrived. From the bright green of Beech, through to English Oak, the serrated edges of Elm and the Small-leaved Limes.
The sound and eventually the sight of a Firecrest moving through the thin twigs of the blossom laden Apple, this tiny bird with a flash of red on its head and white stripe on its face. A Chiffchaff was chiffing and chaffing from branch of the Black Poplar, its colour almost an olive green.
In the Sycamores my eye was taken by constant movements, and a Willow Warbler was checking about for food, while a small charm of Goldfinches flashed their gold marked wings in the sunlight.
The meadows still awash with Cowslips, although many are now starting to turn to seed, the yellow carpet turning more green as the grasses and other flowers grow.
The numerous flowers of the bright yellow of Bulbous Buttercups, alongside the occasional delicate pale blue of the Pale Flax, with Red Clover, Adder’s-tongue Fern and Early Purple Orchids all completing for space.
Also just showing, the pink triangular heads of Sainfoin and waving taller than all the other plants was a single Ox-eye Daisy, the first of hundreds to flower over the next few days and weeks.
As I patrolled the Country Park I was hopeful of seeing a Redstart (one was seen yesterday, only the 2nd of the spring), and they are such gorgeous looking birds, unfortunately not spotted, however a few Swallows coming in, as were the dark black swept back shapes of some Swifts so not too disappointed.
Some large patches of the square stemmed Crosswort show well in amongst the grass, and one a few of the stems my first Cuckoo Spit of the year, blobs of frothy bubbles surrounding the larvae of a froghopper.