After a relatively chilly night, a glorious late summer morning, with clear blue skies except for a tumbled mound of fluffy clouds hanging above the horizon out to sea.
As the grasses fade to soft shades of gold and bronze, the hedgerows are filled with colour. Crimson Blackberries struggle for space with the silvery flowers of Old Man’s Beard, tangled with ropes of glossy green, red and orange Bryony berries, like strings of beads. Dusky blue Sloes cover Blackthorn bushes, while here and there, sprays of the berries of Wayfaring Tree add splashes of bright scarlet. Hawthorn is also in fruit, with acorns on Holm Oak. At the base of the hedges, the tiny, poisonous ‘tomatoes’ of Bittersweet can be found.
Still plenty of flowers to spot on the shorter, downland turf, including the tiny white stars of Fairy Flax, honey-scented Lady’s Bedstraw and deep pink Wild Thyme. Dwarf or ‘Picnic’ Thistles stud the grass – a single deep purple flower on a short, prickly rosette of leaves, with intricate gold Carline Thistle also in bloom. My highlight this morning, a swarm of our last orchid of the year – cream flowered Autumn Ladies Tresses – a spiral of flowers around a stem no taller than my little finger.
In the longer grass, Wild Carrot and Wild Parsnip are still in bloom along with the similar, but unrelated Yarrow.
A shiny black, yellow and white striped Tiger Spider perches in the centre of her web – the distinctive zig-zag ‘accent’ on the web characteristic of this species. Lots of mating Bloody-nose Beetles also seen – the male only about two thirds the size of the females.
Despite the cool start to the day, a few butterflies are already on the wing, with Small Whites and a Red Admiral feeding on Buddleia and a Wall sunbathing on the Coast Path.
Overhead, a few Swallows circle, with a Buzzard wheeling in smooth spirals above the meadows.
Autumn migration is underway, although, as usual, a slow start. This morning’s bird ringing study highlight included Nightjar and Yellow Wagtail, with lots of Willow Warblers in the bushes and hedges.