The sunshine was glorious this morning, providing a pinkish hue across the National Nature Reserve, giving a slightly different colour to the downland especially. Flitting up from the tufts of Tor Grass were 3 Meadow Pipits, there fairly high pitched call drawing them to my attention. Prior to this I was watching the antics of a small group of 10 Jackdaws as they chased and tumbled together.
A Song Thrush emerged from the yellow flowering Gorse – this prickly plant is nearly always in flower – while perched on top was a Blackbird.
The ground was quite crisp and frozen in places after another cold and starry night, the frost outlining some of the fronds of the grasses and the puddles and mud almost solid.
Soaring along the top of the cliffs were 2 Ravens, these huge black corvids dwarfing all but the Great Black–backed Gulls as they flew along. The deep throaty croak a very obvious and easily recognisable call.
On the water were well over 100 Guillemots with more circling around in large groups, these must all have been on the ledges earlier but were now washing and ‘growling’ on the water. A quick scan through found 3 which still had the white heads of their non-breeding plumage.
Nearer the woods the noises of a flock of Tits could be heard, this group moving amongst the long branches of Dogwood comprised of Long-tailed Tits, Great Tits and Blue Tits all moving about at speed making it quite difficult to watch them.
Just taking off into the sky was a Sparrowhawk, this large brown backed bird of prey began soaring out across the bay. Skimming then landing in the water here was a Shag, which then promptly flipped up and dived disappearing from view.
The faint aroma of almonds was wafting from a patch Winter Heliotrope, the strange pale pink flowers sticking up above the large green leaves.