NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND

A family short-break to Brixham was not embarked upon with natural history in mind, but you know how it is... my binoculars came along, I kept one eye firmly on the skies and just around the corner was Berry Head! The view above is from our well-appointed cottage. The garden was the size of a sixpence (remember them?) but the view and elevation made it a birder's dream. I sat there and visualised the viz-mig potential (which was born out by a trickle of pipits and wagtails), plus overflying Peregrine, Raven and Turnstone. I cannot help but wander around such places with a fantasist birder's hat on - checking out the migrant hot-spots, imagining Yellow-broweds and Red-breasted Flys (at the very least), flicking from bush to bush. A Brixham birder has a wealth of habitats to check, from sheltered bays, open seas, tidal harbour, copses, vegetated headlands and - the jewel in the crown - Berry Head. Talking of which, this was the scene on Friday (looking back towards Brix...

We are currently going through an unsavoury period of weather - even those of us in the cosseted south-east are experiencing winds and rainfall more akin to an outlying Scottish isle. As an antidote to all of this, and a promise of things to come, I thought I'd share with you a few days spent botanising in South Devon back in late June 2009. The weather was simply perfect - calmness, warmth and sunny skies - and the wildlife played ball so that my many plant targets were largely met. But what was most stunning, and memorable, about my few days was the scenery. DAY ONE First stop was Berry Head (left). The cliff tops and faces were a veritable hanging gardens of vegetation, including some national rarities. Small Hare's-ear had eluded me in the past, but on this particular morning I found up to 20 small plants with ease. My self-congratulations were tempered when I found out that the Berry Head population of this tiny flowerer is estimated to be between five and six th...