Up above Swanage to the west lies Durlston Country Park. Here, the Portland limestone which dates back over 135 million years has been eroded by the sea to form cliffs which are now the home to important colonies of seabirds. Resident Shags and Herring Gulls are joined by Guillemots, Razorbills and Fulmars in the Spring. Other visitors of special interest include the Bottle- nosed dolphins which are observed and documented, along with the other wildlife, at the Visitor Centre. This observation stretches 400 meters out to sea where a hydrophone picks up the sounds under the sea and narrowcasts them to the Center. Of course the influence of man can also be observed in the area. It was here, on the cliffs, that much of the world famous Purbeck stone was mined and the old quarries can still be seen at Tilly Whim. Also to be seen is The Great Globe carved from local limestone and perhaps Durlston's best known landmark. It was built at Greenwich and then transported and reassembled on Durlston Head in 1887. In the same year the Victorian folly Durlston Castle was built by the eccentric local George Burt as part of his grand plans for the Durlston Estate. At the other end of the estate is Anvil Point Lighthouse which was also built in the same year and serves to remind us of the ultimate untameability of the environment and those who lost their lives in the shipwrecks the coast has seen. The visitor to Durlston enjoys a unique experience. Here we can observe the mergeance of geology and wildlife mediated by human intervention. A process with roots going back so many millions of years and continuing as every new day dawns.