Be inspired by some stunning wildlife images of the UK natural world – mammals, birds, insects and landscapes – taken by Jon Hawkins, on Friday 7th February 2025 at 7.30pm in Froyle Village Hall.

As a professional photographer, wildlife is his hobby. The talk will describe how he achieved getting the photos in relation to the subject. Understanding wildlife is a key essential to taking pictures in the natural environment. Jon’s pictures and associated talk will be a reflection of his appreciation for his subjects and surroundings. Although he shows some settings he used on the photos, there is only brief mention about the technical aspects of photography.

Jon Hawkins is an award winning photographer based in Ash Surrey, see https://surreyhillsphotography.smugmug.com/Galleries/Wildlife. His images have been published in various national magazines, newspapers, greeting cards, calendars and websites including use by the BBC, Sky and National Geographic. Before turning professional as ‘Surrey Hills Photography’ one of his images was included in the BBC’s Countryfile Calendar.

All welcome, Froyle Village Hall, doors open 7pm for talk to start at 7.30pm, teas and coffee.

Join us for a talk entitled the ‘Wildflowers of Froyle’ by botanist Isobel Girvan on Thursday 21st November. How much has changed in the last 30 years to the native flora that grow locally. Isobel has lead plant identification walks in Upper and Lower Froyle in recent years.

This joint project with Alton Natural History Society recording plant species in Froyle is an update to a previous survey in 1991. The variety of locations surveyed included roadside verges, field and wood edges alongside public rights of way as well as other areas with landowner’s permission.
All welcome, Froyle Village Hall doors open 7pm, a brief Froyle Wildlife AGM starts at 7.30pm followed by the talk, entrance free for members, £3 non-members, teas and coffee.

Text from Surrey Wildlife Trust website about Isobel is copied below:- Principal Ecologist, specialising in bespoke botanical surveys and habitat management plans, as well as undertaking National Vegetation Classification (NVC) surveys and has superb knowledge of the UK Habitat Classification system. She has been a full member of the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (MCIEEM) since 2003 and is a Fellow of the Linnean Society (FLS).
She is on the committee for Surrey Botanical Society, Hampshire Flora Group and Alton Natural History Society, attending many of the field meetings during the summer. In the winter there are always mosses to identify with the British Bryological Society.
If there was one thing she would like to see everyone do to help biodiversity it would be to leave at least a small corner of the garden for nature with some decaying wood, or a window box with native wildflowers.

Summary after the talk

Isobel Girvan gave a fascinating talk on the Wildflowers of Froyle, updating a survey originally carried out in 1952 and done again in 1991.

Over the 72 year period the number of species recorded has increased from 86 (1952, which excluded grasses) to 370 (1991) and 429 in 2021/2022.  All three surveys have identified a total of 695 species – “a good number”, reflecting the rich biodiversity of our local area.  Isobel and her helpers made 25 different visits covering 18 out of the 32 “monads” (a square, 1km x 1km) which make up the area of Froyle, collecting over 2,300 plant records.  They visited private land, with permission, and walked public paths and bridleways – but no gardens.  Generally they surveyed when the weather was decent – woodlands in April/May, grasslands in June/July, and again in August and the autumn.  They recorded 121 plants only once, and only one plant on every visit.   What was it?  Scroll to the end.

Two particular highlights were the white helleborine, a rare orchid which grows under beech trees, and toothwort or corpse flower, which is hemi-parasitic on hazel and an ancient woodland indicator. 121 plants were only recorded once, and one plant was recorded on every visit.   What was it?  See the end of this article.

All three of the surveys identified seven broad habitats in the area: woodland (23%) predominates, then neutral grassland (18%), chalk grassland 16%, wetland, garden/urban, arable and other.  In four of the woodland areas they found 42 ancient woodland indicators (“ancient woodland” is woodland which has been managed as such continuously for at least 400 years), including wych elm, bluebells, greater stitchwort, red campion, bugle and dog’s mercury.  We are fortunate in Froyle to have as much ancient woodland as we do, and in particular to have so many wild bluebells, which although common are protected as they are in decline.

On our chalk grasslands Isobel found many species, including bee orchid, pyramidal orchid, common broomrape and quaking grass, and on the neutral grassland, creeping buttercup, meadow buttercup, cowslips and ox-eye daisies.  Even in the arable and hedgerow habitat there was a rich variety of plants, from teasels to musk mallow and dog rose, as there was also in the walls and banks.

About 100 species were recorded for the first time, including red valerian (probably a garden escape), slender rush (an import from the USA first recorded in Hampshire in 1910 and now naturalised here, can be found on path edges) and wall rabbit.  And there at least 225 to be recorded in Froyle, such as wild thyme, gorse and corn spurry, so there is scope for more work surveying.

The number and range of wild plants in Froyle is an indicator of the rich biodiversity we enjoy and benefit from, and need to foster: if we want to do one thing to help with that Isobel encouraged us “to leave at least a small corner of the garden to nature”.

And the most common plant was – the bramble.

Jonathan

Come along to a talk about ‘Why We Need Trees’ by Ben Hamlin, starts at 7.30pm on Friday 11th October in Froyle Village Hall. All welcome to this joint meeting with Froyle Gardening Club.

Lead volunteer with the Woodland Trust, Ben is a retired teacher who had a Damascene moment whilst walking in Alice Holt, since when he has taken every opportunity to tell people about the importance of trees to us. He combined being Tree Warden for Binsted and volunteering for the Woodland Trust with being Mayor of Alton. With a Q&A session at the end of the talk.

Summary after the talk:-

This was both informative and sobering in equal measure. Ben is a lead volunteer with the Woodland Trust with specific responsibility as a tree health surveyor in our area.
The talk covered topics including ‘why we need trees’ (for our health and wellbeing, for wildlife habitats, to clean our air and to help prevent soil erosion are some) and ‘what is the problem?’ (only 13% of the UK has tree cover, only 2% of Britain is ancient woodland with only 15% of that being protected, and a half of our ancient woodland has been lost or damaged since the 1930’s).
Ben then emphasised the threats to trees and woods. It may come as little surprise that climate change is a big factor, and that humans are also responsible for the intensive agriculture and infrastructure/development which all contribute to our declining trees. As a result, ecosystems have disappeared including thousands of miles of hedgerows, and associated wildlife has declined including 55% of woodland butterflies that depend on trees for their lifecycle.
The Woodland Trust owns and cares for a thousand woods in the UK. Their mission covers the creation, protection and restoration of trees and woods. For example, they have planted 43 million trees in the last 45 years. Their current aim is to create 2000 hectares of new native woodland. To add to the 0.5 million people already supporting the Woodland Trust, visit their website www.woodlandtrust.org.uk where you can locate the nearest woods to visit, become a trust member and identify opportunities to volunteer with the trust.

Alan Dyos

Family fun –join us for a 1h dipping session on Sunday 14th July starting at 10am or 11.15am to see what underwater creatures we can find in the wildlife pond near Gid Lane, Upper Froyle. Children will need to be accompanied by a responsible adult. All equipment will be provided and numbers are limited so it is essential to book by emailing info@froylewildlife.co.uk, stating preference for 10am or 11.15am session.

So how did the day turn out?

Families and children enjoyed a lovely few hours pond dipping at the wildlife pond in Upper Froyle. It was perfect weather, lovely and sunny with a slight breeze. This year the pond’s water level was good and we were able to find a great variety of pond life.
The star of the show was once again the newt. Children and adults found many small newts. These were young newts, called newt tadpoles, with frilly gills on the sides of their heads enabling them to live in the water until they are ready to climb out as adults. In the Froyle pond there are two species of newt, the Smooth (or Common) Newt and the Great Crested Newt. Smooth Newts are the most frequently found newt in the UK. When fully grown they have a bright yellow and orange belly with black spots on their throat. They are similar to the Palmate Newt but these have no throat spots. We also have a very good breeding population of Great Crested Newts. When they are fully grown Great Crested Newts are substantially bigger than other newts at 17cm in length. They have dark, lumpy skin on their backs and a bright orange belly. Their name comes from the large, spotted crest that males have on their backs. They also have a white stripe along their tails. Newts breed and their eggs in ponds between February and June. At the end of the summer the young newts lose their outer gills and leave the pond. They often seek shelter under logs and in vegetation. Newts are carnivorous and eat small invertebrates and especially like frog tadpoles. This is why you rarely see newts and frogs in the same pond. Both of these species of newt are protected under law in the UK.
In addition to the newts we also found lots of empty cases of dragonfly nymphs. The young dragonflies will have crawled out of the water and up the tall reeds and broken out of these shells (exuviae). In our trays of pond water we observed live dragonfly nymphs, young water boatmen and diving beetles, fly larvae, pea mussels and ramshorn snails.
Adults and children had fun using the identification cards and learning more about the huge number of tiny creatures that the pond supports.

• Ted Matthews (aged 6) said, “I like pond dipping. You get to find extraordinary creatures and find out what they are. My favourite was the Great Crested Newt. Fun fact – newts lay their eggs in the water.”
• “We thoroughly enjoyed the pond dipping at Froyle wildlife pond last month. Seb learnt all about the different species of insects living in the pond, dragonflies plus fauna & flora surrounding the pond with Barry the Volunteer. Seb was taught how to use the net to gently collect boatman, newts and dragon fly nymphs. We were so inspired that we’ve become members!” Rosie & Seb from Binsted.

Jenny Matthews

Call in anytime between 10am and 4pm on Saturday 13th July to visit the wildlife pond and meadow, near Gid Lane, Upper Froyle. There should be plenty to see especially if it’s a sunny day.
Members of Froyle Wildlife will be on hand to assist with identification of wildflowers, dragonflies and butterflies. Wildflower species to look out for include; knapweed, lady’s bedstraw, sainfoin, self heal, purple loosestrife, water figwort and bird’s-foot trefoil. Last year on the ‘drop-in’- day 17 species of butterfly were noted including Small Copper, Brown Argus, Small Tortioseshell and Painted Lady. Other creatures seen included Dark Bush-cricket, Roesel’s Bush- cricket, 14-spot Ladybird, Tawny Longhorn beetles and Dock Bug. No need to book, anyone can just pop in and see what you can spot.

Keith Betton, chair of Hampshire Ornithological Society and former Hampshire Bird Recorder, will be leading a guided bird walk in Froyle. Keith is an entertaining and highly knowledgeable guide. Please note the change of date to the 28th April.
The walk will start at Froyle Village Hall at 9am and is expected to last approximately 2.5 hours. We will be walking up Bamber Lane towards Yarnhams. Froyle Estate have kindly agreed to allow us access to Hawkins Wood, which is ancient semi-natural woodland; this is shown on a 1771 inventory of Froyle woods. Ancient semi-natural woods are woods that have developed naturally. Most have been used by humans – often managed for timber and other industries over the centuries – but they have had woodland cover for over 400 years. We will be able to explore which birds are within Hawkins wood, and hopefully the bluebells will be in bloom.
Binoculars will be useful for bird spotting, and appropriate footwear in case it’s muddy. Please feel free to bring your own refreshments. All welcome on the walk but no dogs please.

Summary of the walk: Despite the inclement unseasonal weather, Froyle Wildlife was fortunate to have Keith Betton lead us on an informative and entertaining guided bird walk up Bamber Lane in Froyle. Keith is chair of Hampshire Ornithological Society, and has extensive avian knowledge. Thanks to his observations we were able to see and/or hear twenty eight different species of birds. We also learnt various characteristics of their life and behaviour.
List of species:
Rooks; Woodpigeons; Blackbird; Robin; House Sparrow; Starling; Song thrush; Wren; Linnets; Skylark; Dunnock; Chiffchaff; Chaffinch; Great Tit; Nuthatch; Blue Tit; Kestrel; Goldfinch; Greenfinch; Collared Dove; Red Kite; Long Tailed Tit; Blackcap; Tree Pippet; Pheasant; Magpie; Coal Tit; Jackdaw.
We were very lucky to see a Tree pipit, with it’s unusual characteristic behaviour of singing while it ‘parachuted’ down to the ground . This is a red listed bird that will have migrated back to the UK this year from Central Africa, and is not commonly seen. Thanks to Froyle Estate we were able to explore Hawkins Wood, with it’s carpets of bluebells to admire. Even though the weather was more typical for a February cold day, all attendees enjoyed the event, and were very grateful for Keith’s time, knowledge and dialogue throughout the walk. Hopefully there will be an improvement in the Spring weather soon for the birds!

Jayne Fisher

Anita Ebdon, professional falconer and owner of Hampshire Hawk Walks will be speaking about her passion for falconry and bringing some of her birds to meet us at our Froyle Wildlife meeting in March.  Anita will offer us an insight into her daily life, living and working alongside these amazing creatures, how her journey into falconry began and how much her life has changed since acquiring her first hawk.

Anita will give us a deeper understanding of the differences between different species and explain why the Harris’s hawk is such a firm favourite for her.

All welcome, Froyle Village Hall doors open 7pm, talk starts at 7.30pm, entrance free for members, £3 non-members, teas and coffee.

Review of the talk. Anita was accompanied by four of her feathered ‘family’ to give us a fascinating and enjoyable talk on falconry, which is the hunting of prey with birds.
Anita’s first experience of birds of prey (defined as birds that hunt and catch prey with their talons) was on a falconry experience day, where she flew a Harris’s Hawk. This prompted her to forget about getting a dog as a pet, and instead adopted a Harris’s Hawk! Anita now has 9 birds and admits it is a full-time job looking after them. This includes weighing each bird every morning with the aim of maintaining their ideal flying weight. All her birds are allowed to hunt as this is their natural behaviour.
We met London, a 25-year old male Harris’s Hawk (from cowboy country in America), Anita’s favourite of her birds. These hawks are unusual in that they hunt in ‘packs’, working as a team where the males locate their prey, and the females execute the kill. Females are bigger than males, so they are definitely the boss! London is intelligent and is good for hawk walks as he will follow you around the walk.
Willow the Barn Owl is only 9 months old and has been with Anita since she was a 10-day old chick. She is imprinted, so considers Anita to be her mum. A Barn Owls life is all about sound; they have the most sensitive hearing of any bird and are considered the silent hunter, having jagged edges to their feathers enabling silent flight. Despite this, Willow has not caught anything yet.
Texas is a Red-tailed Hawk that breeds throughout most of North America. Texas will catch grey squirrels, although he is both lazy and stubborn according to Anita. Hawks are different to falcons in that they have ‘bendy’ feathers that are adapted to crash down to the ground and into the undergrowth where they catch their prey. Falcons by contrast have stiff feathers and longer wings, ideal for catching prey in mid-air with a beak and feet adapted to hanging on to, and killing, their prey.
Finally, Dougal the Kestrel was on his best behaviour during the evening, perching calmly on his stand despite being considered the nautiest of Anita’s birds. He also has an amazing personality. He is 9-years old and has been with Anita for 2-years. Captive Kestrels can be expected to live for 10-15 years. They are very territorial birds and will typically lock talons and fight any Kestrel intruders on their patch.
Thanks went to Anita for an entertaining and memorable evening.
Alan Dyos

The Froyle Wildlife Annual General Meeting is on Thursday 23rd November at 7.30pm in the Village Hall. Find out what wildlife has been about during the year and your comments are welcomed on events for 2024. The wildlife pond and meadow area near Gid Lane was constructed in 2016, enjoy a pictorial talk about it’s development over the years to become a biodiversity hotspot in Froyle. Talk entitled ‘The Story of a Froyle wildlife pond’ by Barry Clark.

All welcome, Froyle Village Hall doors open 7pm, AGM pictorial review starts at 7.30pm, followed by pond talk, entrance free for members, £3 non-members, teas and coffee.

From the beautiful to the stinky to the deadly poisonous, appreciate the variety of fungi that can be seen when you are out and about in Hampshire. Photographer Rosemary Webb will show us that fungi are not only amazing organisms but also play a vital role in nature to recycle matter.

Doors open Froyle Village Hall 7pm for talk to start at 7.30pm. All welcome, teas/coffee, entrance £3 for non members, members free.

Some text below is copied in part from ‘your guide to fascinating UK fungi’. They come in many different forms such as moulds, mildew, yeasts and mushrooms. They also come in a huge variety of sizes – from microscopic mould spores to the massive silent organisms which live in the soils beneath our feet.
Fungi can be found in just about any habitat but are mainly found on land. Many live in our soils or on decaying organic matter, such as leaf litter, dead wood or animal droppings. Wilder spaces, where we haven’t disturbed the soil or tidied up too much, are a good place to go on a fungi hunt. These include ancient or old woodlands, grasslands and some parks and gardens.
Why are fungi important? Put simply, without fungi, there would be no circle of life. The different types play different roles but quite a lot of them help to break down plants, dead animals and droppings so nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus are recycled into healthy soils. Healthy soil means healthy plants, which in turn provide food for insects, animals, birds and us.

Updated on Thursday 10th August: the Friday sessions are now fully booked but there are spaces remaining for Sunday.

Family fun –join us for a 1h dipping session on Friday 11th and Sunday 13th August to see what underwater creatures we can find in the wildlife pond near Gid Lane, Upper Froyle (see location plan).  Children will need to be accompanied by a responsible adult.  All equipment will be provided and numbers are limited so it is essential to book by emailing info@froylewildlife.co.uk, stating preference for 10 am or 11.15 am session.