A bright morning with a strong wind blowing across, the colours in places a wonderful array of autumnal browns, golds and oranges.
As I patrolled across the meadows, checking quickly that the cattle were still in Saxon field – which they were, appearing in patches on the ground are fungi, including Field Blewitt which has a slightly slimy look to it, Parasol – taller and more elegant and the Yellow Stainer – which turns bright yellow on bruising!
Overhead I was surprised by a flock of Starlings, this group of 15 flying eastwards. We don’t often see these here, but their very distinctive, almost triangular shape give away their identification.
In the gully the high pitched calls of Goldcrests captured my attention, and I spent a fair few minutes trying to track these tiny birds down amongst the twigs and branches of the scrub, eventually the flash of gold reflected in the light making them appear.
Bursts of red showing in the scrub is mostly the bright red berries of Bryony, hanging often on long ropes of twine, while the Rosehips were hanging off the Wild Roses, while from the ground the bright orange berries of Stinking Iris showing.
The sudden squawk from a Jay as I went along the path, the white rump and pink body almost floating through the air as they gently fly through.
The banks of couple of patches on the downland are covered in Bracken, the rusty coloured fronds and stems looking gorgeous in the sunlight. We will be cutting and removing much of this invasive plant over the winter to prevent it spreading out across the Nature Reserve, but it can still be admired for its beauty even though it is a pest.
After the recent rain many of the grassy paths are quite muddy especially out across the meadows, but the clifftop and woodland are fantastic if you want to keep your shoes dry!