A frozen National Nature Reserve welcomed me and the parkrunners today, the sound of ice crunching underfoot a lovely noise!
Aiming for the cliffs where the sunshine was highlighting the rocks in a warm golden pink glow, but the seabird ledges were bereft of life, not a Guillemot to be seen.
A burst of tinkling call and a charm of Goldfinches passed overhead, as I watched them they landed in the feathery fronds of the Tamarisk bushes which line the side of the coastal path. They are originally a Victorian introduction which survive well on the salty sea cliffs of Dorset.
A fluffed up Robin, perched on the top of the gate post while a Song Thrush was in the Wild Pear above. The call of an alarmed Blackbird made me look towards the clump of Hawthorn bushes, their still present berries a deep red.
On the Gorse, bright yellow flowers – the old wives tale says “when Gorse is in flower kissing is in season”. On top of this spiky plant a Stonechat was perched, the white collar easily spotted along.with the dark head and orange front.
When the weather get cold, Redwing often arrive and one of these thrushes was spotted as I looked into the midst of the gully. It hopped from the Sycamore to the Willow, flashing its red feathers under it wing as it moved.
Across the sky the shape of a Magpie noted, as it landed on the branches of an Ash tree, the sun caught the feathers and turned it from black and white, to blue and green and white – a beautifully marked and exotically coloured bird on closer inspection.
Across one of the meadows an almost circular patch of fungi, these being Field Blewits, most of which are no longer fresh and have turned slimy and brown.
Along the woodland, patches of Turkey Tail fungi are on the dead logs lining the path, I stopped briefly to admire the variety of coloured lines forming semi-circles.