A lovely summer morning! Overhead, a perfect blue dome of sky, with the sunshine sparkling on gently lapping waves below the cliffs and carrying the scents of Hawthorn blossom, Elder flowers, Gorse blossom and the curious smell of huge swathes of yellow Horseshoe Vetch (said by some to smell like Stilton cheese!).
The meadows are looking really glorious at the moment, with pink ‘Raspberry Ripple’ Common Spotted Orchids in their thousands, from almost white to dark pink. Yellow Rattle is also starting to flower, it’s fresh seedpods a glossy green, tinged with red, below its unusual yellow and purple flowers.
The delicate blue flowers of Pale Flax bob in the breeze, alongside Bulbous Buttercups, seas of Ox-eye Daisies, pink and white Wild Carrot, and the dense patches of Sainfoin. Below them, a tangle of Common Vetch, Common Mouse-ear and Rough Hawkbit – blazing out of the grass like a thousand tiny suns. Less colourful, but no less beautiful, Durlston’s grasses are starting to flower, with the tiny, intricate flowers of Quaking Grass growing alongside shiny Crested Dogs-tail, Cocksfoot and Meadow Oat Grass to name just a few.
Overhead, Skylarks fill the air with their joyous song, with Whitethroats, Chiffchaffs, Great Tits, Dunnocks and Blackbirds all heard singing from the hedgerows.
A real treat to come across my first Bee Orchid of the year on the downs, with Early Purple Orchids and Common Twayblade also still in bloom.
A great seabird boat trip last night, with (I think) a total of 13 Puffins seen waddling around the ledges, bobbing on the water and flying past the boat – around half of our Purbeck colony! Unusually, for this time of year, some great views of Gannets passing the boat, with one executing one of their characteristic plunge dives. If you want to join us for one, do have a look at the events page on the website.
Great views of our seabirds from the clifftop this morning, with Fulmars sitting on their neat clifftop nests, Guillemots whirring in and out from the cliffs on tiny, flickering wings, or bobbing on the water, alongside blacker, stout-beaked Razorbills.
Plenty of butterflies to enjoy, including Common Blue, Adonis Blue, lots of Small Blues, Dingy Skipper, Lulworth Skipper and Speckled Wood.