I met a man with an eye for birds on the early morning trail
He pointed to a distant flock and said “they’re Pied Wagtail”
I asked him “pray, how can you know when they are so far from here?”
The bird-man smiled a smile at me, then calmly tapped his ear.
The fungi of Durlston continue to play hard to get, with only a small crop of Dead Man’s Fingers on display in the woodlands this morning. I may be forced to transfer my interest to lichens, nothing stops them growing.
Up at the Learning Centre, a Chaffinch perched prominently atop a Sycamore tree, letting out a few brief chirps but not singing. Bristly Ox Tongue and Meadow Barley peppered the verges of the Car Park as I headed down to the Castle to see what I could see. I heard more than I saw, with Great Tits, Jays and the rustling of Blackbirds all audible. I passed a few blooms of Red Valerian and watched an Ash tree seed, still attached to a browning leaf, parachute down to earth on the light breeze.
The horizon was tinted rose gold, with a distant break in the low stratocumulus cloud letting through a beautiful cluster of sunbeams that illuminated the Isle of Wight in an exceptionally pleasing manner. I could hear the tweets of Goldfinches from among the Holm Oaks, and on the water I saw a Shag and a Gannet heading east, both hugging close to the wavetops as they flew.
Further along the Clifftops I encountered one of the parks bird experts, who described his array of sightings that morning. Nothing much, just a few Siskin, Redpoll and a Snipe in Saxon Field. As we spoke, small flocks of birds were passing, and he identified them as Pied and Grey Wagtails. I really need to get one of those British birdsong cd’s.
As I made my way past my favourite Wild Apple tree a Red Admiral fluttered by and I recognised the clacking call of a Stonechat from the Gulley. One down, a few hundred more to go.
Up on the Lighthouse Road several more Common Toadflax were in bloom, a pleasant touch of decoration alongside the endless matts of Wild Clematis. As I walked a small black bird silhouette bobbed towards me, alighting on a nearby Blackthorn. It was amazing to watch this generic black bird blob transform into a Goldfinch as its features became visible. The crimson face, off green body and golden highlights on the wings so very distinctive. If it hadn’t landed, I never would have known.