We met at the Burbush car park and crossed the road to take the squelchy grass
strip along the edge of a line of aging birches, where several Birch
Polypore Piptoporus betulinus of various sizes were
seen.
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| Wavy Bitter-cress © Sue Skarstein |
Turning through a narrow strip of woodland and then
skirting the wooded edge of a paddock, keen eyes spotted foraging Chaffinches a
Dunnock, Great Tits, Redwings and Long-tailed Tits. At least a couple of
Nuthatches voiced their displeasure at presumably our presence.
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| Orange Peel Fungus © Bill Johnson |
Having been scolded, we went out into the heather
to a gradual climb to pass through another small area of wood and up to Castle
Hill Lane, the lane serving some country houses. The lane passed through
Coffins Holms, a long wooded area, well over 200 years old, and featured several
still standing dead and eye catching oaks, some having lost their bark, and
gnarled birches. A fallen trunk was covered with what looked like broken cauliflower,
the remains of something unidentifiable. Someone coveted the roots to be used
in a garden stumpery.
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| Pale Oyster Fungi |
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| Lichen thought to be Cladonia grayi © Richard Smith |
Nearby, a white tip was spotted protruding through
the fallen leaves, a Common Inkcap Coprinopsis atramentaria was
hazarded. Above the lane were Blue Tits and enough Goldfinches to warrant the
accolade of being called a charm. Down the slope but upwind of us were some
Fallow Deer.
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| Fallow Deer © Glynis Payne |
It was pointed that the flowers and developing single
berries on the Butcher's Broom bushes we were seeing during the walk were in
fact sprouting from flattened stems that have evolved to look like leaves.
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| Butcher's Broom © Chris Robinso |
Leaving the lane at the end of the wood and walking
down alongside a paddock two Mistle Thrushes were seen before we started down
the slope, where a narrow path through heather took us to the return track. We
bypassed a muddy section in the belt of trees of Burnt Axon. As a result of the
detour, we came across some diminutive Yellow Stagshorn Calocer viscosia.
JE
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| Yellow Stagshorn © Glynis Payne |
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| © Crown Copyright 2022 Ordinence Survey. Media 005/22 |