After the strong winds of last night, a glorious day for a patrol. The wind drawing me towards the coast where the pale grey water was rolling in to the rock face causing a mass of seething white water churning and crashing.
The water was being forced through the blow hole producing a spurt of salty spray, which is always a great sight.
A flock of Jackdaws were twirling and turning along, landing on the Tamarisk and amongst the lumps and bumps of the Yellow Ant hill tufts. Many of these hills have a brighter green colour than the surrounding area, as they have own little micro-climates.
The dead flowers of Teasel, Greater Knapweed, Yarrow, Wood Sage and Wild Carrot stand erect across the downland, reminders of the glorious summer flower show, now distinctive brown stems and bracts.
Very few flowers now out, just a scattering of Ivy flowers, generally the latest nectar source of the year, alongside the bright yellow flowers of Gorse, a plant which produces flowers all year round. A single spike of Ragwort was looking battered and worn after the recent winds, but still showing yellow against the various browns of the backdrop.
Along the bottom of the hedgerows, the Stinking Iris berries flashing orange as I walked past. Other berries still in evidence are the deep red Cotoneaster, a brighter red Hawthorn and the brilliant red Black Bryony.
The call of a Meadow Pipit as it flew above, I was able to watch it land on the field and get a good look at it, until I was distracted by the sight of a Dunnock skulking along the bottom of the patch of Blackthorn.
Along the back of the downs two Bullfinches were perched on the branches of an Elder and a Wren scuttled along the lower twigs of the Brambles.
Back through the woods and a sudden chattering on the trees saw 2 Grey Squirrels chasing up and down the trunk of an old Willow