Winter days are graveyard days, the wilds an open tomb
Burdock stand and Bracken lays, While Teasel hoists its plume
No longer do these once green plants stand tall amongst the living
But from beyond with seed and frond their bodies keep on giving.
Stepping out of the Learning Centre I laid my binoculars on the fence outside the Wildlife Area. Rosehips blushed red from thorny stems of Dog Rose whilst a Dunnock settled among the branches of a Buddleia.
Turning towards the Large Copse I inspected a patch of Glittering Wood Moss nestling beside the path. It was completely saturated, unsurprising given the recent weather. Some moss species can hold up to 20 times their dry weight in water, which helps to compensate for their low functioning root systems.
Urtica dioica was rearing its ugly head beside fresh Cleavers beside the Large Copse. The tiny spines on Nettle are called trichomes which deliver the sting, a mixture of formic acid (the same acid found in ant bites) which causes the initial pain and histamines which trigger the rash and irritation. A little further along a few Broad Leaved Dock were opening up to the morning light, it’s nice of them to make themselves available.
Saxon Field was rife with tiny emergent Blackthorn, forming a thorny Phalanx amidst the thick Tor Grass. Their older brothers and sisters stood alongside, wreathed in Oakmoss and Common Orange Lichen. Husks of dead Burdock still bore up their hooked seed heads, spreading the next generation from beyond the grave.
I spoke to a visitor a few days ago about a mystery bird with a call that sounded reminiscent of a grasshopper. During my morning misadventures I came across a few potential candidates. A few Wrens were letting out hearty trills, and a Great Tit took a break from its impression of a squeaky wheelbarrow to let out a grasshopper-esque reel.
After reaching the Downs I made an about turn and headed back along the Upper Gulley, leaving the twisted, broken bodies of Bracken behind me and treading muddy paths where Green Woodpeckers and Chaffinches called.