I managed to find a few flowers this morning. A couple of pale blue Sea Aster flowers persisted beneath the protection of cliff top Tamarisk and beside the yellow of a few Bristly Ox Tongue flowers. Upon the Limestone slopes of the gully one stem of a Milkwort had flowers blue and white. Amongst the sward were discarded Garden Snail shells and a few Spiders webs decorated with dew and perhaps less likely to catch the crawling insects they were intended for. Near the walling centre a few flowers and many buds on a Viburnum merged with Ivy fruits and leaves. I read a poem that had been planted in a dry-stone wall gap that was entitled “Just a Dry-Stone Wall” by MJC.
It was great to see the seaward face of The Dell Bridge exposed thanks to selective tree felling. A Jay passed though said area. The sun was visible for several minutes as an orange orb until it rose and disappeared into cloud cover above the marine horizon. One Shag flew low over Durlston Bay heading towards the exposed Peveril Ledges.
Four pairs of Jackdaws perched about the Belvedere. I later disturbed a dozen at the observation point causing them to briefly mix with passing Rock Doves. In the gully Jackdaw numbers reached forty at one point. For a time, some ten Jackdaws occupied the lower mile marker whilst later twenty plus birds perched spread out along the telephone line near the Lighthouse. Anvil Point lamp “winked” this morning.
From the observation point there was one Peregrine Falcon to the east on the cliff face ledge near Durlston Head. To the west another perched near the Guillemot colony. The cave edge had an occupancy of eighty birds with seven having to use the sloping boulder surface as a perch. A loose linear raft of seventeen Guillemots became twenty-four on closer inspection with several birds showing much white plumage. It was a Fulmar that arced of the sea cliffs in its graceful manner. One Great Black Back Gull perched near the cliff colony whilst several others and Herring Gulls flew by heading west.
Before my taking the weather readings a Bullfinch appear amongst Sloe bearing branches seaward of the learning centre. Several Blue Tits passed through the Elms on the “road island”. On the castle approach a Green Woodpecker waffle was heard although the bird itself remained hidden from view. Outside the Castle itself the Daffodil blades had grown to eight inches tall and a few buds were showing.