Over the years we have been regular visitors to the bluebell walk in Sandhurst Copse which consistently delivers an impressive display. We visited last week and although the display was impressive there were certainly less flowers than previous years. It was notable however that the plants in the open, where trees had recently been cut back, were much more vibrant than in the darker woodland. After the record rainfall, lack of sunlight and generally miserable weather during April, I wonder if the plants that received more light just did better than those that presumed it was still winter like the rest of us.

If you want to visit Sandhurst Copse and Sheepwalk you will need to get permission from Patrick. Please leave a comment and we’ll put you in touch with him.

Sure enough there is a full schedule of things to see, hear, drink and eat. With food from Champan Tandoori, Hogsback beer, Pimms,  a paella and teas, coffee and cakes.  If you are lucky you might even win a HD TV in the Grand Prize Draw. See you there.

11.30 Formal Opening

11.45 Music from the Badger Set Band

12.45 Joseph’s Amazing Racing Pigs – Main Arena

13.15 Music

14.00 Tug of War

15.00 Joseph’s Amazing Racing Pigs – Main Arena

15.30 Second Music set

16.00 Grand Draw

16.30 Fete Closes

We were away last week but on our return we were greeted by enthusiastic cuckooing – the date I heard it first was 10th May. This is much later than last year when we heard it first on 10th April. This might be due to rain keeping us indoors for much of April, but I have also heard that the record wet April we experienced has confused birdlife and caused it to behave as if it is Autumn. It might just be that the cuckoo is sensible and just stayed in its winter home in the Med until the weather picked up here.

Please leave a comment and let us know when you first heard a cuckoo this year.

Our swallows arrived bang on time on the 16th April – exactly the same date as last year.

Male Toads – 712, Female Toads – 198, Female Frogs – 34, Newts -6

Total - 950

Run over on Woodhill Lane, Stroud Lane, Madgehole Lane - 202

Common toads are particular about the ponds in which they breed and return to their ancestral breeding ponds, typically larger ponds than are found in gardens. It is quite possible that the toads that migrate to the ponds around Woodhill have been doing so for hundreds of years. As recently as the late 1950s Woodhill Lane was not much more than a farm track and even in the 60s and 70s it barely saw much more traffic than the odd Land Rover. Today it is much busier and between dusk and around 8pm many of these toads fall victim to commuters making their way back to Shamley Green and Cranleigh.

It is only down to the work of Jan Larter and her colleagues from Amphibian and Reptile Conservation www.arc-trust.org that the 202 lost this year wasn’t 1,152. The toad migration is a wonderful thing, it would be a shame to lose these amphibians. So if you are driving home after dark in March and come across a little fella making his way slowly over the road, please stop and give him a hand, you’ll be helping to preserve something special. 

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Visitors to this site will know that Woodhill, Shamley Green and its surrounding countryside is home to one of the largest toad populations in the UK. Every March, following their winter hibernation, around two to four thousand make their way down from the hills and heathland to the ponds at Woodhill to find a mate and lay their sporn.

In order to get to the ponds they have to cross Woodhill Lane which can be busy at rush hour. But assistance is on hand, helping these little amphibians cross the road are number of volunteers from the Surrey Reptile Association who make sure they  get to the ponds safely.

The toads don’t move if the temperature falls below 8c. Over the last week we have seen the mercury hover just over and just under 8c, tonight it is 6c. The result, just four hundred have made the journey so far. Hundreds will move on a warm night filled with rain, but these have been few and far between this March. The forecasters are predicting heavy rain on Saturday night, if so we’ll have our hands full – quite literally.

2010 saw the largest number of toads recorded with over 4,000 making the journey, last year just 2,000 were counted. Its early days yet and we’ll keep you up to date on the site.

Volunteers release the toads at the ponds

The ducklings are living on an island in the middle of the lake which provides some protection from predators. But at this time of the year they will need to watch out for a very cunning fox who got the better of ‘Lucy’, a rather large goose, in November. Then there are also three local buzzards, who are taking great interest.

The ducklings do, however, have mild weather on their site. This time last year temperatures were struggling to get above freezing at night. So far this year we have not seen a frost, with the mercury averaging around 6c at night and double figures during the day. The forecast into next week is for the mild weather to continue.

The Indian Runner ducklings' mother

The duckings will become independent at around six weeks, when their chances of survival increase significantly. We’ll keep you posted on their progress.

Mistletoe is a parasite that grows on the branches of its host tree, sending out roots into its tree to take up nutrients. There are males and females, the females baring a sticky white berry. Their favourite host is the apple tree, which explains their abundance in Hereford and Worcester, counties famous for their orchards.

It is of course kissing at Christmas for which mistletoe is famous. Kissing under the mistletoe dates back to druid times where it was thought that the plant held special fertility powers. Mistletoe of the oak was especially sacred to the druids who would cut it with a gold sickle at winter solstice. They believed that mistletoe was the soul of the tree. During the middle ages it was hung around the house with holly and ivy to ward off witches and evil spirits. In the eighteenth century a young lady who stood beneath mistletoe could not refuse to be kissed, such a kiss would deliver love, romance and lasting friendship and goodwill.

We have plenty of the stuff hanging in the cottage this Christmas.

Regular visitors to the site will know that here at Woodhill Cottage we are big fans of weather folklore, so I have turned to the legendary folklore forecaster Robin Page of BBC One Man and His Dog fame to see what he says on November weather. Apparently a cold November signifies a mild winter – ‘Ice in November to bear a duck, the rest of the winter will be slush and muck.’ He doesn’t say whether the reverse is true, but if the high pressure currently located over central Europe pushes north west it could help change the winds from the south to the east and bring us some cold weather later in the month. This time last year we were experiencing record low temperatures which culminated in 30 centemeters of snow falling on the Surrey Hills on the 30th November, snow which didn’t thaw until after Christmas.

Heavy Snowfall in November last year.

So how do we know this is a grass snake and not an adder?  Both look similar in size and markings. The grass snake is more olive in colour, the adder brown with a darker zig zag and a ‘v’ on the back of its head. The way to know for sure is to look it in the eyes, the grass snake has a circular pupil, the adder has a vertical ‘slit’.

The grass snake next door is a small one, they can grow to over a meter long, it is probably young as they tend to hatch in early September. It is likely that it had been looking for a good place to hibernate last week as they tend to bed down in October.

UPDATE: I believe that it has now moved on, probably due to the hot weather over the weekend.

Red-backed shrikes are slightly larger but slimmer then a house sparrow and are unmistakable with a bluish-grey head, black mask over its eyes, a bright chestnut back and thick hooked black bill. It is often referred to as the ‘butcher bird’ as it impales its prey of beetles, lizards, bees and other insects on thorns or brambles.

The shrike was first seen in the field in front of Woodhill Farm house on June 26th. We haven’t been able to get a photo but I have found some video which shows it clearly. Also click on this link to see a report from the  Spring Watch team who’s cameraman spotted and filmed one last year.