"For now we are young let us lay in the sun and count every beautiful thing we can see" Neutral Milk Hotel.

Tuesday, 6 May 2014

An afternoon walk at Old Hunstanton

I thought it was time for me to explore the dunes etc. at Old Hunstanton as I had not visited for some time. I was particularly interested to see how the area between the dunes and the golf course was looking after all the scrub-clearing and turf-scraping which has taken place. The visit gave me an opportunity to spot flowers which Andy had first sighted e.g. Japanese Rose, Hoary Cress, English Scurvy-grass, Horseradish, Smooth Hawk's-beard and Yellow Rattle.  Apart from these I also found a few species new for the patch.
Sweet Vernal-grass seems to like the area behind the dunes (You can use it to add flavour to a cheap vodka!) In the wetter area both Field and Marsh Horsetails were growing, fertile and sterile stems. Towards the Holme end there were a number of patches of Tansy-flowered Phacelia, almost certainly escapes from cultivation. Bird's-foot trefoil was just beginning to flower. I found a single Cat's-ear flower. In the central area there were lots of plants of Southern Marsh-orchid, 3 of which had open flowers. If previous years are mirrored then there should be several hundred spikes, including a few white-flowered plants.
Although not looking for birds I couldn't miss at least 6 Wheatears which were showing well. I also came across a white moth. I'm not a "mother" but I think it is probably a Grass Rivulet.

Yellow-rattle

Sweet Vernal-grass

Tansy-leaved Phacelia

Common Bird's-foot-trefoil

 Southern Marsh-orchid

Wheatear

Grass Rivulet

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