Despite my short journey from Langton Matravers I was surprised to find Swanage and Durlston to be a relatively snow free oasis! My local Tawny Owls might perhaps have better hunting over towards Swanage! I took the call of an unseen Green Woodpecker as a “Welcome to February! “
Okay, there was a light dusting of snow about the of quarry depressions (including Saxons Hay Rake Quarr), on pathways and the summit of the reclaimed landfill site. I was concerned that the cattle troughs in active service near California Quarry might be frozen, however, I encountered no frozen puddles of ground during my walk. Indeed the churned clay paths of Saxon’s soggy Sycamore corner lived up to its name! A vocal Blue Tit perched on top of the tallest Sycamore and broadcasted its call. However, on my journey across Saxon’s seaward facing half there was of course the “expected” pair of Carrion Crow on the sward but I also flushed a pair of distinctive waders which I believed were Snipe.
A Wren trilled nearby the still yellow flowers of Wild Cabbage just inside the upper gully field. Below me a green carpet stretched towards the cliff edge. A pair of Great black back gulls took off from the coastal down-land. A good dozen Jackdaws ascended in a spiral from the gully mouth to then perch upon the Lighthouse complex rooftops and overhead wires.
The Magpie which was sat upon the tip of the upper Mile Marker was soon replaced by a Jackdaw duo. However, it appeared to have joined its partner beside the road near the quarr.
A distant sunbeam broke through the cloud far out over the sea. Drifting westward with the current were a half dozen Guillemot off the gully mouth. A nearby Shag was seen to set up from the sea and fly east presumably to counteract the current to keep its fishing spot. I saw at least three Gannets close to shore whilst a couple might have been circling off Anvil Point, another flew west ahead of the Lifeboat. The later was soon to return in the opposite direction. There was a flock of a dozen seabirds on passage going west which I suspected were of the Shearwater family. Closer to the cliffs we had another raft of two score of Guillemots whist another eighty plus occupied the cliff cave. Some seven of the seabirds sat on sloping surfaces whilst a Herring Gull occupied the seaward corner of this refuge. Whilst a pair of Great black back gulls observed the activity from the cliff top another preferred to perform a flypast the sea cliff. Only one Fulmar was seen active pirouetting about the cliffs. As I walked up the diagonal path, admiring the recent glade hay cut, a cloud of fifty or so Guillemot headed out to sea.