NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND

  Birding lockdown walk (number one) was a circular affair from home, looping across Epsom and Walton Downs, then onto Walton Heath. Very quiet, with the birds coming in sudden bursts - 125 Skylarks across two fields, 30 Meadow Pipits in a flock, a pair of Stonechats, plus maybe 60 Fieldfares and 150 Redwing (above). Botanical highlight was my annual visit to the (expanding) patch of Green Hellebore in a copse on Walton Downs (below). Not much of it was in flower. If I had have found a Little Bunting, or Great Grey Shrike, or Black-throated Thrush, I wouldn't really have been able to announce it, what with all the restrictions currently in place. So when I do, you won't know. If I have already, I couldn't say...

Every January, since I first saw them in 2015, I return to one of the small woods on the slopes of Walton Downs, and pay my respects to the tidy clump of Green Hellebore. As to why I have gone back these past six Januarys is beyond me, I just do, a pavlovian reaction at the start of the year. It might have something to do with the fact that they are in full flower in the depths of winter, and not many species are doing that right now - so maybe it is a reminder of the seasons yet to come. Whatever the reason, here they are in all their finery this morning.

There are certain things that appear on this blog with regularity - you could, in fact, almost set your calendar to them. One of these repeat performers is Green Hellebore (above and below). Every January I pay a visit to the clump that haunt a copse on Walton Downs, take a few pictures and post them on here. That is where I went this morning. Job done. This will be followed by Spurge Laurel and Wild Candytuft in the coming weeks. Bird wise a strange morning. Long spells of deadly quiet punctuated by skies full of birds. Highlights were Red Kite, Common Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, 60 Stock Dove, 100+ Skylark, 250+ Redwing, only 3 Fieldfare, 2 Stonechat, a Marsh Tit, a Raven and 120 Goldfinch. Talking about repeat performers, Stonechat photos will most probably pop up on ND&B several times this year. Here's the first offering, the female of a pair seen this morning...

This wall summed up all that is pleasurable about my current little project, that of recording all of the flora in the 'compartments' of the uber patch. Without it, I would have not checked this old wall in Church Street, Epsom, and would therefore not have recorded four species of fern - in the image above, from left to right, are Wall-rue, Hart's-tongue and Black Spleenwort. Just a few metres away was this Maidenhair Spleenwort (below) - no excuses for posting another image of this fine species. This afternoon, to escape 'Brigit Jone's Baby' on the TV, I paid my respects to the Green Hellebores (below) on Walton Downs, which came with the bonus of a flushed Woodcock. I also visited nearby Juniper Hill where there is - surprise, surprise - a good number of mature Juniper bushes (bottom). By the way, I've been unhappy with the reproduction of my images on this blog for some time and have only just got around to trying to sort it out. With the help ...

The grey, wet murk of the past few days had finally sodded off and ND&B-land found itself basking in a low, blinding sun. Out came the bins, on went the ruck-sack and I hot-footed it up to Epsom and Walton Downs for a mornings aimless wander. I needn't have taken the bins as the birding was dire. However, as befitting a winter's morning playing at being spring, I sought out a patch of Green Hellebore that is present in a small wood on the lower slopes of Walton Downs. Only a couple of flowers were open (above) with most of the small population a little way off from flowering (below). The Woodland Trust seem to have upped the ante in the creation of their Millennium Woodland on parts of the downland farm fields ( click here to find out more about this project ). Piles of posts and plastic tubing were lying in strategic positions, but the dead give-away were a number of posters along the public footpaths, inviting volunteers to come along for tree-planting sessions la...

Today saw the annual animal inventory take place at London Zoo - the keepers get together and count all the creatures that are within their care. I know it's most probably an age thing, but when I think of a zoo keeper I just see an image of Johnny Morris in my mind, peaked cap, leaning on a broom and talking to an elephant that talks back to him in a funny voice. If you are under 50 years of age you won't have a clue what I'm on about. It passed for entertainment back in the day... Last year the final tally came to 17,480 of 756 species. I thought that I'd join in, so I took myself off to Langley Vale Farm and counted every bird that I saw in a three hour period. My (more) modest total was 1,277 of 38 species. Woodpigeon was by far the largest component (510). Highlights included 5 Red-legged Partridge and 3 Marsh Tit. Botanically I paid my respects to the patch of Green Hellebore (above) that had come on a treat since my last visit in December. Also of note was...

I'm quite lucky in having our two native Hellebores close to home. Stinking ( which I recently posted about here ) and Green (Helleborus viridus). The latter is not commonly found (at least where I go looking) and has a preference for shady situations on chalk and limestone. There are at least a couple of patches of it in one of the woods found on Langley Vale Farm. While I was admiring it and taking a few pictures this morning (above and below) I was buzzed by a very vocal Marsh Tit - another local site for this dwindling bird! Hellebores are quite showy things and are a garden favourite, particularly Lenten-rose (H orientalis).  They can easily hop over a garden fence and start to colonise 'wild' space. I have also found Corsican Hellebore (H. argutifolius) growing on a roadside verge in Banstead, which still persists 10 years after my initial discovery. Incidentally, this latter species was also found growing on the shingle at Dungeness earlier in the year by Dave W...