My day started with the familiar song of a Blackcap outside the Castle. I went about my usual routine; sitting on the wall and staring into the canopy of the Holm Oaks, but inevitably failing to catch a glimpse of the bird.
I wandered over the Buddleia which has recently become a hive of activity for butterflies and humans alike, with the sighting of two distinct Large Tortoiseshell butterflies – a species which has been extinct in the UK for over 60 years. The identification of two different individuals indicates the species might have actually bred here, like they have this year on Portland, rather than being a one-off sighting!
This morning I don’t spy any Large Tortoiseshells, but am no less pleased to see literally dozens of Red Admirals and more occasional Peacock butterflies, all enjoying the nectar inside the Buddelias little purple flower heads. I wonder why Buddleia is the favoured flower? All of the insects seem to ignore the equally bright pink flowers of Valerian, Willowherb and Teasel below.
Following the coast path around Durlston Head, I startled a dart of yellow-green feathers. The Green Woodpecker had swooped silently out of sight, holding in it’s characteristic ‘yaffle’ call to not give away its position.
Around the Great Globe, the grasslands are yellow, baked dry by the summer sun. Seed heads bob calmly around more butterflies – Marbled White, Gatekeeper, and Small Skipper. A Buff-tailed Bumblebee buzzes between colourful heads of Woolly Thistle, Bristly Ox-tongue, and Wild Carrot.
Along the cliffs I find myself following a Lobster boat heading westward and occasionally chucking empty pots overboard. Rock Pipits dance around the footpath in front of me, whilst a charm of Goldfinches scatter from a nearby hollow, erupting into chorus as they take flight. I can also hear a Stonechats ‘chak’, from the top of a prickly Gorse hedge, sounding like a couple of stones being knocked together.
The water below the ledges at Tilly Whim is crystal clear, though I couldn’t see any fish below the surface. A week or so ago, I had been lucky enough to see Mackerel hunting a shoal of smaller fish into the sea caves here. The mackerel had likely been driven ashore by a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins which was also spotted that weekend. No dolphins today, but interesting a local fisherman recently reported Common Dolphins off St Aldhelms Head, which aren’t seen too often along our coast.
A few arrow-shaped Swifts dance above the Lighthouse, ready to depart the coast and begin their long journey south for the winter.