STROLLERS along the sea-cliffs in southern England or on western coasts may see a brightly-coloured bird sitting and flicking its wings on top of a gorse bush. It has a glossy black head that looks rather large, a white collar, and an orange-red breast. When it flies off, it shows a small white rump. This is a male stonechat, a relative of the robin. Its mate, who is a brown bird, is probably sitting on a nest of eggs under a nearby gorse bush. They are both very lively little birds, and feed by darting down to the ground from their perch to pick up insects that they have spied in the grass. The male’s song is a brisk, slightly musical chatter, and its alarm call sounds like two stones being knocked sharply together.
A noticeable flower of the clifftops is thrift, or sea pink. It has bright pink flowers that tremble on a stiff stem. Sometimes it grows in clumps but a single flower may be lodged in a tiny crack. It gets the name “thrift” from its narrow, tightly packed leaves that conserve water in the salty sea air. DJM