Today’s choice of route combined the opportunity to check on some of the practical work which is being done at the moment and to look at future work while looking for wildlife at the same time.
Into Saxon field where the regrowth from the last two years has now mostly been cut and burnt leaving more and better quality grassland for the future.
The wildlife was lacking in number and variety, however a Pheasant was calling loudly from the scrub which is growing out of an old quarry working at the side of the meadows. For once this large game bird not taking off directly in front of me, but wandering around below the branches or the mature Blackthorn and Hawthorn.
Near here a Dunnock was squeaking, a good view of this the ‘Hedge Sparrow’ as it skulked at the bottom of the scrub, the dark markings on its brown back contrasting with its mostly grey head.
Yesterday the Friends of Durlston Work Party was cutting and burning the Blackthorn and Bramble which over the last few years has grown up around the Pond, a fantastic job done by the volunteers to open up this habitat. Why not come and join in the fun next Wednesday at 10am?
Up onto the downs we went via the Napoleonic steps, where a few clumps of Gorse were in flower, the bright yellow pea-flowers providing a great contrast with the increasingly dark and foreboding sky moving in from the west.
Perched amongst the white-grey wisps of Old Man’s Beard was a Wren, which suddenly produced a very loud blast of sound.
The Hereford Cattle in the Lighthouse field are munching steadily (the more they eat the less we have to cut and clear), one of the larger females was stretched right over the wall as she stripped the Ivy leaves, this being one of their favourite plants – hopefully the wall will survive the attention.
In the same area hoping to eat the berries was a Blackbird and a Song Thrush, while Herring Gulls were having a rummage around the cow pats.
Last night a Fox and a Badger were spotted as they wandered around the Park