Hot again but a gentle cooling breeze along the clifftops made for a lovely walk. An array of flowers including the yellow heads of Bristly Ox-tongue, this weed of disturbed ground a wonderful nectar source for insects. I spend a while trying to identify the 6 different hoverflies, 5 species of bee and a few beetles. Only on the hoverflies Volucella zonaria & Scaeva pyrastri did I succeed.
Against the blue sky a twittering flock of Goldfinches flew, landing in the Tamarisk fronds before moving onto a Wayfaring Tree, where they disturbed a bard brown coloured Blackbird.
Growing out of the dry stone walls the delicate Ivy-leaved Toadflax, small leaves and pale lilac flower as well as tougher waxy leaved Red and White Valerian.
The loud yaffle of a Green Woodpecker grabbed my attention, as I looked up this green and yellow bird undulated across the sky. Above it were 50 or so Swifts and a few Swallows and a couple of Sand Martins.
Lots of butterflies to enjoy, especially Marbled Whites (white and black chessboard markings), Gatekeepers (two tone brown) and Meadow Browns in a variety of colours from pale tawny to bright orange and chestnut). Just to confuse a Grayling fluttered by a slightly different flight movement alerting me to it.
Lots of Lulworth Skippers skipping along the Tor Grass, along the coast and downs plus the occasional Small Skipper alongside – a bit bigger and brighter. Red Admiral, Large White and Speckled Wood along seen.
Along the entrance road 2 Pipistrelle Bats still flying in daylight.
Yesterday evening there was a mass exodus of flying Yellow Meadow Ants, looking across the meadows thousands upon thousands of these insects taking their first (and only) flight, an extraordinary sight.
The bird ringing this morning caught 2 early Meadow Pipits and unusually a Treecreeper.
I finished with a short wander through the shaded and much cooler woodland where the remains of the Red Cage Fungus Clathrus Ruber was in evidence.