It’s a wet start to Sunday with drab views across the pond from the bird hide. Hard to believe that two days ago our volunteer bird ringers caught over 100 Chiffchaffs here in one morning. Today with just a lone Robin herd chirping amongst the scrub. Though further down the footpath, I spot a charm of Goldfinch and a Chiffchaff upon the red Hawthorn brimming with berries.
The Hereford Cows are scattered about grazing Skipworth and Smithfield, and will now be working their way through the meadows and chomping down the turf. Magpies follow them through the wet grass, awaiting a tasty snack to be unearthed in their wake.
A Peregrine Falcon takes flight as I step into one of the viewpoints bordered by Holm Oak. Durlston Bay is filled with mist, the grey sea blending seamlessly with the sky. It’s framed by the two headlands still just visible a kilometre or so in both directions. A lone fishing boat rocks from side to side as lobster pots are lifted, checked, and emptied. I can just make out the Brittany Ferries Barfleur in the distance.
Rain continues to fall as I attempt to take shelter in the woodland. The droplets collide with the leaves and cause them to fall all around me. The forest floor becomes filled with browned palmate-shaped Sycamore leaves, stems of pinnately compound Ash leaves, and the large serrated leaflets of Horse Chestnut.
Plenty of the winged Sycamore seeds are also scattered everywhere, their spinning flight lending their colloquial name ‘helicopters’ and enabling dispersal far and wide in the breeze. The damp weather has spurred the growth of an abundance of Fungi amongst the leaf litter.