Another glorious golden sunrise and an air of calmness greeted me.At one point there was a double sun effect as the sun itself shone just above the sea which reflected a mirror image back. Much of the cloud formed a “mackerel sky” yet visibility was good revealing St. Catherine’s Head on the isle of Wight. It was unusual to see a coaster heading towards Portland stern first!
Amongst the familiar Magpie, Blackbird and Great Tit activity a flock of a dozen suspected Redwing. Indeed, one trailing bird, that had paused in the scrub, was a definite Redwing with its almost Badger-like facial striping. Dancing ahead of me as we approached the walling centre were a quartet of Blue Tit.
The weekends Duke of Edinburgh Awards work party had made good progress in a tough location. Near the Small Copse dense wind-shaped Blackthorn had grown horizontally thus making clearance challenging. Into view appeared a Rabbit which I could watch run alongside the tumbled down wall. A mound of soil, which appeared to have been a Rabbit warren, was as high as and even spilled over the wall. However, as a wheelbarrow full of old bottles had been recovered (so far) from this location perhaps a range of debris had been once dumped there.
A Guillemot was heard then seen flying low over the sea towards to the cliffs. Herring Gulls called off shore whilst a Shag flew and landed, albeit briefly, off Tilly Whim Ledge. Whilst a Rock Dove perched on the wave cut platform lip a dozen Racing Pigeons moved over land.
At one point the occupied Guillemot cave ledge had a Peregrine Falcon perched uppermost above it followed by a pair of Great Black-backed Gull. Beneath the colony a couple trio of Shags rest on the ledge nearest the sea. Meanwhile, a linear raft of a score Guillemots chattered and preened upon the water. Neither Rock Doves nor Jackdaws appeared concerned by the predator’s presence.
As I was about to squeeze through the fence line into the Goat Plot when the heads of two Roe Deer popped up. The antler-less deer bounced off up slope flashing their white rumps until they disappeared into the Holm Oak cover. Walking through the slope’s sward my ankles were brushed with Gorse regrowth and I had to pause to avoid a foot going into a rabbit hole amongst the grass.