On the approach road in a Green Woodpecker flew along the verge whilst at least three Grey Squirrel scampered out the way whilst a pair of Carrion Crows looked on. Over the car park there were two flocks the larger consisting of seventy birds Woodpigeon and smaller flock and actual birds I suspected were Redwing. By Longmeadow were a quartet of Chaffinches, along with Great and Blue Tits amongst the tree and shrub cover. A family of Long Tailed tits travelled through Laurel beside Reservoir Copse. The first of my three Jay sightings was as one such bird used the road as a runway for take-off. Another crept out from the field margins of Saxon by hoping from scrub islands.
My efforts to follow the flocks resulting in seeing the mass of Woodpigeon rise up from Lighthouse Green then disperse amongst the gully scrub, no doubt to gorge upon Ivy berries!
Upon the former quarry slopes Jackdaws foraged upon the short turf amongst the Hereford cattle. A Kestrel had paused upon this open grassland but flew up ahead of me “scoring a goal” by flying between the mile markers! Whilst preoccupied, looking through the binoculars, I managed to enable one of my feet to skate through a fresh car pat! Looking groundward I caught site of Wasp Spider egg cell amongst taller grass. Unlike most I had found in recent months this cell had been ripped open and still contained spider mites. From the miniature balloon a tangle of threads had been pulled out giving it the appearance of a Jellyfish.
I walked alongside freshly restored dry stone wall and saw a Female Pheasant on the ground ahead amongst the leftover walling stone. Whilst she was able to fly off the Harts Tongue Fern and fresh growth of Bittersweet remained firmly anchored helping to revegetate the former work site. Saxon Field had a Red Clover flower in a sheltered margin whilst the upper gully still had a vibrant yellow flowered clump of Wild Cabbage with seed pods. Beside it was a tall square stemmed spike of Wild Clary with at least one remaining flower. I believed the furry velvet like leaves of a basal rosette in the castle turret may have been Great Mullein a plant which has flowered in the quarry hollows. For some reason I remember it once having been called Postman’s Parcel!.