A dramatic change to the weather, with grey skies and a fresh south-westerly breeze – although the weather here had been fairly pleasant compare with the unbearable heat elsewhere!
Along the clifftops a Gannet was soaring close in, the long white wings flashing, the black wing tips dipping and swinging. As it came closer the creamy-yellowish head could be seen – just magnificent birds.
A tall patch of Hemp Agrimony was attracting a variety of insects – solitary bees, a hoverfly and a Meadow Brown, while the yellow topped sturdy looking Ploughman’s Spikenard, was alongside the tall stems of Teasel. The tiny flowers of these plants in a perfect lilac ring round the middle of the ‘brush’.
On close inspection the delicate dark pinky-purple around the edges of the Sea Lavender flower, spotted, providing a shimmering edge to the cliffs.
A call of a Green Woodpecker from behind me, the green bird swooshing across the sky. A Skylark was also in flight, uttering a stuttering rendition of its beautiful song.
Swaying in the breeze the tall Wild Parsnip, on many of the yellow flower heads were the orange-brown Soldier Beetles.
Across the meadows most of the grasses have turned a yellowy brown after all the dry and a hot weather, but amongst them the sight and sound of Grasshoppers.
The Field Grasshoppers and Meadow Grasshoppers the most common to see, spraying out away from me as I walked the path, along the hedgerow the brown chunky bodies of the Dark Bush-cricket, whilst down on the bare ground near the cliffs the paler Grey Bush-cricket was spotted.
Last night the bright green light of a Glow-worm was enjoyed as was the sight of the silent Tawny Owl, wafting past, a dark shape against the night sky.