The East Meon Nature Group has started a regular early evening patrol on Coombe Road to monitor the number of toads and other amphibians, and help them across the road. This will last until the spawning season finishes in a couple of months. They are moving to their spawning pond which is situated just to the east of Coombe Road and north of Duncombe Wood. In previous years there has often been a toad massacre Read more…
There are a number of large flocks of fieldfares in the fields and meadows around East Meon at the moment. You can here their chak-chak-chak calls as they move from hedges to trees to fields. They are winter visitors from Europe, where the weather is generally much colder and harsher than it is here. They eat mostly worms or insects on the ground, but you may see them in your garden occasionally. Photo by Semen Borisov on Unsplash.
Spring is definitely on it’s way. The snowdrops beside the pond at Lower House Farm, Frogmore are looking a treat. This is one of the best shows of snowdrops in the Parish.
East Meon Garden Club and East Meon Nature Group are hosting a talk (via Zoom) on 15 February 2021 at 6.30 pm. This will be presented by Chris Powles, who is the Chair of Kirtlington Wildlife & Conservation Society, together with his brother, Stephen, they will present a little on hedgehog ecology before going on to explain why and how we should create hedgehog highways. Stephen is a wildlife photographer and cameraman. We now know that Read more…
With the mild and wet weather the toads beside Coombe Road have started their journey to the pond north of Duncombe Wood. Nick Read-Beale found this male toad yesterday evening on the road near Duncombe Cottage. The East Meon Nature Group ‘Toad Patrol’ will start soon. The patrollers will assist the toads in crossing the road, so they reach the pond safely. Click on this link for details https://eastmeonnature.com/toads-on-the-roads/
If you look carefully the signs of spring are starting to appear, even though the days are short and it is wet, gloomy and cold. The picture shows some tightly formed hazel catkins. It won’t belong before they lengthen and expand and let their male pollen flow free.
Will Atkinson sent me this picture of an otter’s footprints captured on the stretch of the River Meon running through the fields of Lower Farm. It is good to know that the otters are still around and is a sign of the health of the River Meon (when it is flowing!).
With the leaves fallen from the trees, now is a good time to spot mistletoe. They are parasites on the tree they rest in, taking water and nutrients from their hosts. Some mistletoes do perform photosynthesis during some of the year, so are only hemiparasitic. Pre-Christian cultures regarded the white berries as symbols of male fertility, leading to the ‘kissing’ rituals of today.
The Grow Wild organisation are offering a series of live online live events on wild flowers and fungi. Go to https://twitter.com/GrowWildUK or https://www.growwilduk.com for more details. Grow wild is a national outreach initiative of the Royal Botanical Gardens Kew amongst others.
The very colourful spindle tree fruit are showing very well as the leaves have gone from the trees. The spindle tree (euonymus europeans) has very hard wood and can be cut to a sharp point. It was used for making spindles for wool spinning and for butchers’ skewers. Charcoal produced from this plant is seen as superior among artists due to its strength and density. However the attractive fruit are poisonous, so beware.