The wind chill (feels-like temperature) at Gunton Hall, Suffolk, generally ranged between 6°C and 8°C (43°F – 46°F) during the day, accompanied by moderate easterly or southerly breezes of 10–15 mph. The actual air temperature was around 9°C to 12°C.
I started out on my daily walk towards the lake. A couple of pied wagtails were busy feeding on the grass, bobbing their tiny tails up and down as they hopped along. Many jackdaws and a few magpies were spread out across the grassy field, while several large gulls flew about with their wings outstretched.

Upon arriving at a thickly wooded area, I saw several grey squirrels racing around, dashing up thick tree trunks and burrowing under the leaf litter. The leaves were piled high over dead twigs and branches, affording the squirrels plenty of cover. Several varieties of daffodils were in bloom everywhere, though most were a variety with large, beautiful yellow blossoms.

At the lake, I snapped a photograph of a pair of swans dipping their heads under the surface to feed on aquatic organisms. I stopped to take more photographs of the blue lake and the contrasting yellow daffodils growing across the woodland floor. Many wild primroses were also in flower along the edges of the pathway, with a few yellow lesser celandine flowers growing amongst them, creating a veritable symphony of early springtime yellow.

Several mallard ducks floated by on the water’s surface; I photographed one framed by interesting hazel catkins hanging from a bankside tree. I also captured images of a moorhen floating near the edge and a black-headed gull perched on a rock in the centre of the lake. The swans remained busy feeding among the reeds on what seemed to be an inexhaustible supply of food.

I photographed a majestic stand of oaks alongside the lake and a cheeky little grey squirrel on the pathway, dwarfed by those ancient arboreal giants. Crossing a small bridge at the end of the lake, I paused for a few more photographs of the aquatic life. It was then that I had my first sighting this year of a butterfly feeding on a wild primrose. Sadly, I was unable to get a photograph before it flew away, but it had distinctive, bright yellow wings.
A search on Google confirmed that a yellow butterfly spotted in the UK during March is almost certainly a male Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni). They are among the first to emerge from hibernation, often seen on sunny spring days with bright, lemon-yellow, leaf-shaped wings.
I completed my walk by a small pond, photographing a moorhen and a couple of mallards on the weedy surface.
Today, I walked 1.85 miles in 41 minutes. Google Fit awarded me 10 heart points

Copyright ©️ Text, photographs and videos Written by John Yeo – All rights reserved.