Emerging suddenly from the tree nursery plot was a young Pheasant chick, a flurry of wings as it shot upwards – this sudden burst is a trait these birds have which has caused me much alarm at times! A second chick was mooching around the grass with the adult hen.
Young birds and birdsong galore this morning including the warblers Chiffchaff, Common Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat and Blackcap. Also spotted were Linnet, Goldfinch, Bullfinch and perched on the top of a flowering Wayfaring Tree was a gorgeous Greenfinch, its yellow and green colours backlit by a perfect blue sky.
Along the cliffs the Thrift (Sea Pinks or Pin Cushions) is just starting to loose its vibrant pink, while in large clumps all around the yellow Kidney Vetch is out, a few showing its tufty white fur.
A large white flower (5” umbel comprising of hundreds of tiny flowers) of Wild Carrot, was a surrounded by a number of deep pink umbels, but only the white one was being used by Ants (at least seven) who seemed to be collecting nectar, probing each individual tiny flower, quite fascinating to watch.
A Rock Pipit perched on the cliff wall, while another called from below, behind me Jackdaws were chuckling and a Blackbird landed alongside a Song Thrush in the Hawthorn – the flowers of which are now going over.
Dripping off a variety of plants is the Cuckoo Spit, blobs of white froth protecting the nymph of a Froghopper as it grows.
As I peered over the edge the Great Black-backed Gull was not sitting on its nest, instead had stretched its legs leaving me to see inside, where there was at least one eggs and a tiny ball of pale grey fluff, with dark dots, this chick then stood and waddled before hunkering down again as its parent returned.
Watch some of this years videos of the Guillemots including the first chick which hatched out (that I could see) on Sunday 24 May. https://www.durlston.co.uk/wildlife-and-marine-guillemots.aspx