A refreshing change in the weather after a sweltering day yesterday! This morning, a pleasant northerly breeze carries the scents of summer grass and flowers and makes the meadows dance.
A White Poplar, stirred by the wind flashes the silvery undersides of it’s leaves, while in the meadows, the wind has stripped most of the delicate blue petals of Pale Flax from their stems.
The short downland turf is looking glorious, dappled with bright pink Wild Thyme, pink and white striped Restharrow and bright yellow Birdsfoot Trefoil. Sweet-scented Marjoram is in bloom here and there, along with Wood Sage and Eyebright to name just a few.
On the longer turf, a sea of pink and white Wild Carrot is now dotted with yellow Wild Parsnip (another member of the ‘Cow Parsley’ or Umbellifer family) along with the similarly shaped but unrelated Yarrow. Hemp Agrimony is attracting the attention of several Red Admiral butterflies, with spikes of yellow Agrimony (no relation!) poking up through the surrounding grasses.
Not an especially sunny morning, but there are still plenty of butterflies on the wing, with Marbled Whites the most numerous. Chocolate-coloured Meadow Browns are also very plentiful, with Small and Lulworth Skippers, Small Heath, Common and Small Blue and Speckled Wood all seen this morning.
Along the clifftops, yellow Golden Samphire is starting to flower, with a lovely surprise as I rounded Durlston Head just in time to see the rear end of a Badger (up well past bedtime!) disappearing over the wall near the Globe!
Sandwich Terns plunge like missiles into the water in Durlston Bay, with Rock Pipits darting around above the clifftop further round. A pair of Kestrels put on a dramatic show near the Observation Point, while down below, the cliffs are still busy, as the end of breeding season approaches.
Guillemots and Razorbills are still on the ledges and water, with Fulmars wheeling into the cliffs, veering away at the last moment with effortless mastery, Great Black-backed Gulls bob on the water below the ledges, with a few Gannets passing further out to sea.