It was actually cool when I set out on my early patrol at 7am this morning – a welcome relief after another hot nights sleep! Of course it didn’t last. By 7.30ish the humidity had increased and I could literally watch the weather station’s thermometer increasing in Celsius.
I decided to walk down around Durlston Head, where I rounded the corner just in time to spot a Gannet flying out to sea. Pretty yellow and purple flower heads of Sea Aster can be seen poking out over the dry stone walls, and between the ferny branches of Tamarisk; which have once again grown to great heights and will need to be cut soon!
A group of Crows appeared to be playing ‘King of the Hill’ atop the Great Globe this morning. Noisily arguing and tussling with one another over the prized position located somewhere in the Arctic.
Upon reaching the clifftop, I could see a Peregrine Falcon sitting on his rocky perch near the empty guillemot’s ledge. He’s alert, twitching his head from side to side, keeping watch over the coastline.
I walk further along the coastpath to get a photo of him from the other side. As I turn back towards him and begin zooming in with my camera lens, I hear the call of another Peregrine screeching out behind me. I turn and spot the bird perched near the Tilly Whim caves; she’s much larger with darker markings on the chest.
She flies away just as I hear the approach of a high pitched squeaking close to the waters surface. Two Oyster Catchers flying west, their long orange beaks making a beeline towards Anvil Point and beyond, where the sea blends seamlessly into the sky.
Yet more Crows forage in Long Meadow, almost obscured amongst the ripe crop of dry grasses, sunny Fleabane, and bright purple Knapweed. Wrens and Robins jump between the field and the path, whilst a Chiffchaff can be heard amongst the hedgerow, which is now sprouting a bounty of maturing Sloes and Blackberries.