What a fantastic morning! After our coldest night of the year so far (1.8 degrees Celsius), the park is glittering with frost and puddles and even the large pond in the Wildlife Area is frozen.
My feet crunch over frozen grass in the meadows, which are bathed in a rosy glow as the sun rises. The hedgerows are slowly coming back to life as it warms up, with a family of Long-tailed Tits foraging for breakfast along the side of Taskers Meadow, with Chaffinches, Great Tits, Blue Tits, Robins and a Wren also out and about in the same patch. A Dunnock shuffles, mouse-like along the base of the hedge, where the bright orange seeds of Stinking Iris add a splash of colour to the dark, bare stems of Blackthorn.
On Caravan Terrace, a single, frost covered Primrose is in bloom, along with the fresh leaves of Red Valerian, tightly furled Lords and Ladies and the glossy green straps of Hartstongue Fern.
A Bullfinch holds forth from the scrub above the terrace, his crimson breast echoing the rosy glow of the sea and sky.
Guillemots whir past Durlston Head, with large rafts of Guillemots and Razorbills on the water below the cliffs. Fulmars cut effortless arcs through the air above them, with a Rock Pipit bobbing along the clifftop near Tilly Whim.
My highlight this morning – a quick flash of fiery red revealed the presence of a Black Redstart on the ledge at Tilly Whim – otherwise perfectly camouflaged against the rocks.
A patch of Gorse is in full bloom just above Tilly Whim (they say ‘When Gorse is in flower, kissings in season!’ – of course Gorse flowers all year round
Our Cattle are happily grazing away in the Lighthouse Field, where they will be for the next week or two, helping maintain this fantastic area of grassland. A youngster peers over the wall from Goat Plot to watch me with gentle curiosity as I pass.
Down below a Kestrel is perched on the wires above the Gully, with a Roe Deer galloping down the slopes into the sheltered scrub below.