As I began my patrol, through the grey clouds a blue strip of sky could be seen, and around it a delicate bright pink orange light effect, this soon disappeared to be replaced by a variety of greys.
Looking across Durlston Bay, a swirling mass of House Martins occupied me, the constant flitting as they circled, the white rump flashing as they turned, at last 50 were counted but they kept moving so not very accurate.
Around the head the feathery fronds of the Tamarisk waving in the wind, perched amongst them some Goldfinches, the gold wing bars really showing up well against their backdrop. This flock moving up and down the hedge in a flurry of activity.
At sea the grey mass of water was seething and rolling in, soaring above were Gannets, a quite glorious sight as these huge seabirds banked and glided. As I watched their were at least 13, of which 6 were gleaming white adults, the others were this years all brown youngsters or last years brown and white ones, almost as if they were getting lessons in flying in the strong winds.
A little later the Gannets were joined by a mixed flock of gulls which include Great Black-backed Gulls, Herring Gulls and the much smaller Black-headed Gulls.
A few small flocks of Wood Pigeon moving across, just the start of thousands which will be travelling over the next month.
As autumn takes hold the leaves are changing colours, one of the English Oaks has turned a gorgeous yellow, another still deep green, the Hazels also starting to turn yellow while the Dogwood is going dark red.
In amongst these leaves a Chiffchaff perched, while a much greyer Blackcap moved searching for morsels of food.
From above the load croak of a Raven made me look upwards to see this large black shape moving across the sky, and in the foreground a Carrion Crow and a Jackdaw, letting me get a sense of the size differences between these closely related species.
Returning, for once, just before the rain a Goldcrest spotted in the woods as was a Jay and a Peregrine overhead.