It’s a chilly start with dew on the ground, though the cloud steadily begins to clear, opening up pockets of blue sky, and allowing the Sun to cast a warm glow across the park. Blue Tits, Great Tits, and Robins all sing together for this morning’s dawn chorus, with a loud interruption by a Pheasant bursting into flight.
Leaves have began to fall across Durlston; Sycamore leaves furl and brown at the edges, whilst much of the lofty Horse Chestnut canopy already rustles underfoot along the footpaths. The leaf-fall is excelled by the cold breeze which blows from across Durlston Bay, it carries waves into the shore and up through the wooded slopes.
With autumn comes a bounty of fruits to find; from the blue Sloes upon the Blackthorn, fewer remaining Blackberries on the Bramble, Dogrose adorned with beautiful crimson Rosehips and there are plentiful yellow Crab-apples upon the trees in the Dell.
The wind picks upon even more along the coastal path to the exposed Durlston Head. Here beneath the aerobics of the Swallows, a flock of Siskin chatter as they take cover amongst the swaying Tamarisk. They take flight towards the Globe where a female Peregrine suddenly appears soaring up from the cliffs. Towards the Castle it loses momentum as it hits the wind, but soars higher into the sky with its wings steady and outstretched.
Metal clanging along the clifftop where a catamaran trundles through the choppy water. Jackdaws scattered across the slopes, with Herring Gull and Shag patrolling the cliffs below.
Up past the Castle, a small Holm Oak is filled with a melody of chirps and whistles from Goldcrest, Long-tailed Tit, Robin and Great Tit, all taking cover amongst the tree’s evergreen crown. Every so often two Goldcrest appear, showing a glimpse of the yellow stripe upon their heads. They hunt for insects whilst moving continuously from branch to branch.