As I stepped out of my front door this morning, a Sparrowhawk flew overhead. A chill in the air, with the low Sun, it felt very autumnal with slow Robin song, and melancholic Blackbird warbling amongst the trees. Amongst the greening Holm Oak acorns, soft piping from Goldcrest, and cheerier tunes from Chiffchaff, Great Tit, and Chaffinch.
The autumn migration continues with Linnets and Siskin moving through the sky. They are joined by the pleasing aerobics of House Martin headed South. Charms of Goldfinch build in number with some groups 20+ spotted ‘tinkling’ as they swoop overhead. Harsher tones are heard from Crow and Magpie as they argue with one another by the Elder. And a loud ‘swooosh’ as the Woodpigeons race overhead.
Mexican Daisies line my path down past the Castle, brimming with flowers both white and pink. No sign of the Wall Lizards basking their usual spot beside the stone tablets, though a chance to see them later with the Sun no longer obscured by cloud. Lanceolate Aster in flower by the Globe.
A bounty of nectar provided by Ivy flowers; their dome-shaped clusters appearing everywhere in the past week: Timed with the emergence of the Ivy Bees which hum across the crop. These solitary bees are found by the thousand on slopes near the lighthouse, where they nest closely together, each digging an individual hole in scrapes of bare earth.
I wander down to the clifftop where a flock of Jackdaw flock together in the Tamarisk. They take flight as I step up to the Observation Point, black silhouettes soaring out above the sea. A familiar loud screeching heard, where not just one, but two Peregrines perched upon the rocky promontory just down from the Dolphin Hut. A passing Kestrel makes the third bird of prey this morning.
20 Crossbills spotted by Hamish, with sightings most days. He also tells me he spent a while yesterday trying snap the Bluefin Tuna in Durlston Bay (also sighted frequently these past couple of weeks).