A Precarious Existence

Back to work today, but gently, and home for a late lunch. Chilly to start, but what a lovely morning! At my first job - near Hunter's Lodge on the A35 - I could hear Song Thrush and Chaffinch singing, and the garden feeding station was busy with Siskins. The sun had some proper heat in it eventually, and spring suddenly didn't seem so far away.

I wasn't the only one feeling it, judging by the number of people out for a walk at West Bay after lunch. I had high hopes that a Black Redstart might likewise have been drawn to the seafront by the weather, and checked one of their favourite spots by the start of the West Pier. In fact there were two birds - on rocks either side of the pier...

Female type Black Redstart on the east side, beautifully lit...

...and this one on the west side, in more challenging light. The blurry spots to its left and right are flies; there were loads of them.

I spent about 15 minutes trying to get decent shots of the Black Redstarts, then checked the West Pier rocks for Purple Sands. None on show, so I loitered at the far end, just chilling out and wondering what it must be like to be a Fulmar...

Fulmars on the East Cliffs

Just look at them in that photo above, loafing about on their ledges and playing in the updraught. What a life. Here they are again, in a wider shot for context...

Roughly 400m from my vantage point on the pier. Someone on the left enjoying a picnic on the coast path.

Despite being just below a public footpath, a vertical cliff is as undisturbed as it gets, really. Well, you'd think so. The weathered nature of their ledges indicates a piece of cliff that's been around for a while, but to the right is a much smoother section. I expect you can guess why. Yes, the weathered bit has fallen off. And when that happens, this happens...

Another massive cliff-fall.

And so a big slice of Fulmar habitat bites the dust. Eventually the weather will erode the cliff face again but, meanwhile, no Fulmars will be breeding on that bit. A quick glance at the whole of the East Cliff is quite revealing...

An awful lot of unweathered cliff!

Yep, living on a sandstone cliff face is evidently a precarious existence.