The year began with a mean temperature of 7.8°C and rain. The 2nd was dry with a beautiful sunny morning and frost in the shade, the mean temperature dropped to 2.8°C. Song Thrush, Robin, Dunnock and Great Tits were loud in song. Nuthatch calling near Field Shelter in Kiln Close. There were 4 Bullfinch in the North Park Hedge. The cattle appear to prefer grazing the top of the Main Field. Three small bird nestboxes were erected, two replacement and one new. A Barn Owl was seen in Kiln Close at about 4:30pm as it was becoming dimpsy. By the 3rd the mean temperature had dropped again to 0.8°C. There were 4 Yellowhammer, 7 Goldfinch, a couple of Chaffinch, Dunnock and one Wren in the crop, with a Sparrowhawk flying over. There was a Stonechat in the hedge between Kiln Close and Top Field.
On the 6th a male Cirl Bunting (first site record) was seen in Pennsland Lane hedge with female Reed Bunting. They were sunning themselves then flew into the crop. There were also 2 Yellowhammer and 3 Goldfinch in crop and 8 Meadow Pipit around the cattle. A female Stonechat was seen on the slopes of the Main Field and there was a flock of 7 Bullfinch feeding on Hawthorn buds in North Park. We recorded 9 Mistle Thrush along the east side of Top Field and 12 Blackbird around Forde Orchard with Greenfinch and Fieldfare. A Great Spotted Woodpecker flew out of Kiln Close hedge.
There were 5 Greenfinch, 6 Bullfinch and 8 Chaffinch all busy in Kiln Close Hedge on the 7th as well as House Sparrows and Blue and Great Tits. A Rabbit was seen at the top gate into Corner wood. A Pair of Stock Dove were on the roof of the North Park pole-box, and Stonechats in Kiln Close, and in the Main Field near the solar panels and on and beside the crop.
On the afternoon of Wednesday 8th, it began to snow here on frozen ground and there was a Herring Gull sitting on the tall telegraph pole in Kiln Close as the snow came down. By the 9th there was snow and ice hanging on the wire of the electric fence around the crop. This caused several of the posts to snap and the fence was down in several places, however there was no obvious signs of the cattle or goats going into the crop. New posts were put in where needed and others stood back up and snow and ice was knocked off wires. There were 5 Greenfinch in top of Ash tree in the Pennsland Lane hedge, and a Buzzard flushed from the base of hedge in North Park. At lunchtime Chaffinch, Dunnock, Song thrush, Fieldfare and Linet were all seen in the bird food crop.
Wildlife Tower
Rewilding area
Main Field
Laid hedge
Winter bird food crop
Cattle in snow
Cattle in snow
Archie & Alfred in snow
Annie in snow
Snowman in orchard
The Docks in the old bird food crop are popular with Bullfinch and 7 were counted on the 10th. A juvenile Buzzard was flushed from the base of hedge in North Park, in exactly the same place as the previous day, it was presumed hunting for invertebrates. A Goldcrest was restlessly foraging near Apprentice Path bridge, A Grey Heron flushed down the river towards the ponds. There were 10 Blackbirds and 2 Fieldfare on the ground in orchard.
Alfred, the goat, escaped on the morning of the 11th and was found on the porch of the Meeting Room. He obliging went back onto the LLP where he met up with the other goats, however we haven’t yet discovered how he got out. At 15:45 we had great views of a Fox making its way down the Main Field past the Pole-box into the roadside hedge. It was the first one we’ve seen in daylight for some time.
Full moon over the LLP
A Stoat was spotted passing downstream on the apprentice Path, before darting upstream and across the path on the 13th and on the 14th a Grey Heron was seen near the stream between the ponds. Harry and volunteer Steve finished clearing the bramble encroachment from the fence line around the rewilding area in North Park. There was a Fox seen in the crop and a pair of Stock Dove on the North Park pole-box. There was an amazing full moon on the 13th. Six Bullfinch were seen feeding on the Docks in NW corner of the Main Field on the 16th. A Song Thrush was spotted in the crop, and a Kestrel was hunting overhead.
The first Frogspawn of the year appeared in the Oakley Pond on the 17th January . This is the 5th earliest date we have recorded in the last 19-years and four of the last five years were even earlier. Some spawn was also found a rock near the Flo Pond, indicating that a Frog about to spawn had been caught and eaten. The trail camera on the Flo Pond picked up a brief shot of a visiting Otter on the Flo Pond on the 17th at 12:42am.
Mateo led a group of 6 visitors on a Winter Bird Walk. They recorded 21 species: Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Robin, House Sparrow, Dunnock, Wren, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Bullfinch, Treecreeper, Stonechat, Meadow Pipit, Mistle Thrush, Blackbird, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wood Pigeon, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Buzzard and Herring Gull. They didn’t see any birds in the crop.
There was more Frogspawn in the Oakley Pond on the 20th and on the 21st we found the first patches in the Flo Pond. The Grey Heron is visiting the ponds frequently, as evidenced by the droppings we are seeing and the trail camera picked up some footage on the island in the Flo Pond at 8:30am on the 20th.
On the 21st Harry and Frances checked the fence posts on the Pennsland Lane boundary to see which need replacing, unfortunately lots, the fence was originally put up in March 2004 so many posts have rotted.
Frog Spawn Dates
| 17th January 2025 | 20th January 2019 | 30th January 2013 |
| 20th January 2024 | 21st January 2018 | 19th January 2012 |
| 7th January 2023 | 30th January 2017 | 4th February 2011 |
| 4th January 2022 | 24th January 2016 | 9th February 2010 |
| 14th January 2021 | 27th January 2015 | 28th January 2009 |
| 8th January 2020 | 24th January 2014 | 23rd January 2008 |
| 22nd January 2007 |
An Otter was picked up again on the trail camera in the Flo Pond on the 22nd! It was seen swimming around, near the island for longer this time. A second (out of focus) video showed only its whiskers as it investigated the trail camera. Three leaning apple trees were propped in Forde Orchard using props cut in Corner Wood. Three apple trees were also pruned. The first Snowdrops were seen around the base of the Apple trees in Forde Orchard.
Two thirds of the Orchid patch in Kiln Close was strimmed on the 23rd and a Harrier was seen flying from just below the Pennsland Land gateway away over the crop at lunchtime. Heavy rain overnight stirred up the river, the level rose and the water brought topsoil down from somewhere upstream. The debris blocked the abstraction point causing the pond level to drop on the 24th Interestingly heavy rain on the 26th didn’t block it up and there was no sign of topsoil in the water. The ground has been saturated since the 24th, even at the top of the land where another stretch of the Pennsland Lane hedge was laid by Harry, Pip, Josh and volunteer Steve. A Buzzard is being seen every day flying off from the Flo Pond.
More frogspawn has been appearing in both ponds, particularly at the foot of the Kingfisher Wall in the Flo Pond. The frogs are being predated by Buzzard, Heron, Tawny Owl and Otter and all of them have been caught on the trail camera.
A large dog Fox was caught on camera in Riverbank Wood at 1:13am on 25th. On the 27th the first Bluebell leaf spikes were appearing in Corner Wood.
More video clips of the Otter visiting the Flo Pond were caught on the trail camera in the early hours of 30th. It appeared at 12:29 and again at 04:38 and 06:32.
The mean temperature for the month was 5.1°C, below the average of 6.1°C here. We had 21-days with rain totalling 281.4mm, 178% more than average and our third highest in the last 20-years, leaving the ground saturated.