There were two highlights of the morning. The first being the superb views of the Isle of Wight and the skyline of the New Forest / New Milton. Much detail could be seen even St. Catherine’s Head Lighthouse stack which did give a flash of light. Another bright light shone from Peveril Point, however, this was only the lamp of a bicycle!
The second highlight had to be the Goldfinch galore! Their chirruping could be heard and their wing flashes seen in many locations. Early on there were several perched in an Ash tree in the wildlife garden, thereafter I often saw a dozen pass by in undulating flight. However, it was around the castle that a three score Goldfinch charm created my biggest gathering of said birds this morning.
Five Grey Squirrels, fortunately, not Black Cats, crossed my path today! The bounty of plump Acorns was most obvious upon the Holm Oak beside the observation point. At one point forty Jackdaw were together in the air before separating again going to cliff top or tree top cover. Near the Noon bench there was my “regular” pair of Blackbirds. I had a good view of the female for a change and some the detail of here red/brown breast with speckles and the hint of a pale collar. There were enough Evergreen Ivy flowers open, below the Globe, to have attracted a range of Wasps, Hoverflies and Bees, with more flowers still to open. A Lesser Bloody-nosed Beetle walked the coast path margin whilst I found two Sphaeritidae glabratus, shiny blacks rounded beetle with lines on their wings cases.
Out at sea a Fishing Boat was just inside the Peveril Ledges marker buoy having not long lain the dozen pot markers within Durlston Bay. A steady stream of Herring Gulls, predominantly immatures, headed west off Durlston Head. I managed to watch a Shag come into land on a low white stained ledge. It was not long before the bird was shaking and stretching it wings doing its vampires cloak act!
On reaching Tilly Whim steps the wind became most noticeably causing Tamarisk to dance! Meadow Pipits were heard rather than easily seen. Hamish reported a Siskin and I enjoyed the swooping and swerving of passing of two score Swallows and House Martins upon the wares.