This morning I drive into a very wet Durlston, I get out my car to change into my wellies thinking that all the birds will be hiding – instead, the sound of my favourite native songbird – the Song Thrush, could be heard loudly in the small castle copse with its unique changes in sound and rhythm. Whilst putting my wellies on, Robins could be heard calling with one singing away like it’s a beautiful sunny day – it isn’t!
I head towards the pleasure ground woodlands – it’s dryer under the trees, passing though the car park and the end of long meadow, to the right I notice the red wood from the now leafless Dogwood shrubs within a hedgerow. Also spotted in this hedgerow is Ivy, Brambles and Stinking Iris to name a few plants.
Into the woodland, an already dark atmosphere turns darker as I walk under the evergreen Holm Oak, the sound of rain can be heard hitting the leaves as I walk through. I could only hear the robins calling and singing away, other bird species must be hunkering down?
Walking through, vegetation that is spotted are Nettles, Black Pine – some leaning towards the cliff, Bracken, Harts-tongue Fern, Tamarisk, and Greater Horsetail. Due to the adverse weather conditions, I try to look out at Durlston Bay, this kind of weather often brings out the Gannets – unfortunately all I could see was fog, though I did see a Wood Pigeon!
Getting soaked, I head back along the Play Trail, noticing saplings of Holly and Hazel. Red berries is still spotted from the Stinking Iris providing colour to the dullness of a wet December morning, a Great Tit is heard as I walk past Wild Privet and Elm. Within the trail, I spot a fruiting body of a fungi species on a dead stump – which is possibly Chicken of the Woods.
I walk back to the bird hide where I can hear another Song Thrush behind pond amongst Blackthorn and Hawthorn, many a Robin and two Goldfinches were spotted flying above.
Back into the office where the camera shows the Guillemots back in their cave perhaps covering from the weather.