Thursday 29 February 2024

February

Rushmoor Community Lottery

We've launched our page on the Rushmoor Community Lottery. 
Tickets cost £1 per week - we will receive 50p per ticket (and other local good causes 10p). 
You could win up to £25,000!
Scan the QR code below, or click this link to go to our page. Thank you for your support.



Volunteer Work Parties

Our volunteer work party schedule for the next few months. Please do come and join us if you're free - a great way to spend a morning, helping nature, working with the local community, and having some fun at the same time.





Thursday 1st February

Mark Elsoffer: 2 Green Sandpiper, 6+ Snipe, Dartford Warbler, 2 Raven & Peregrine.

Peter Brown: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Dina Burford: Goldcrest.

(c) Dina Burford - Dartford Warbler

(c) Dina Burford - Stonechat

(c) Colin Varndell - Sunset

(c) Colin Varndell - Great Spotted Woodpeckers

Friday 2nd February

Dina Burford: Shelduck.

A massive thank you to the 19 volunteers, including the Surrey Choices Growth Team, who spent today coppicing along the river and using the cut wood to build a dead hedge. 

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Dina Burford - Shelduck

(c) Jonathan Durham - Goldfinch

Saturday 3rd February

Anon: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Sunday 4th February

Simon Stacey: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Monday 5th February

John Hunt: Green Sandpiper & 2 Black-necked Grebe.

(c) John Hunt - Black-necked Grebes

Tuesday 6th February

Peter Brown: 3 Green Sandpiper & 2 Black-necked Grebe.

(c) Colin Varndell - Song Thrush

(c) Colin Varndell - Tufted Ducks

Wednesday 7th February

Peter Brown: Dunlin, 4 Snipe & 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Thursday 8th February

Thanks to the rangers and volunteers from the Blackwater Valley Countryside Partnership for removing tree protectors from the Bat Field today.

(c) Colin Varndell - BVCP

Friday 9th February

Colin Varndell: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

(c) Colin Varndell - Lord Len & Patch Cmdr

(c) Colin Varndell - Starlings

Saturday 10th February

Dina Burford: 30+ Snipe.

Mark Elsoffer: Jack Snipe, Water Rail, 6 Stonechat & 2 Peregrine.

Malcolm Fincham: 3 Green Sandpiper2 Black-necked Grebe.

A huge thank you to the 18 volunteers who spent today cutting willow in the reed beds. Great to be joined by so many families and DofE students.

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Malcolm Fincham - Black-necked Grebes

(c) Gillian Bamford - Blossom

(c) Myung-hye Chun - Ballooning Spiders

(c) Amber Homersham - Peregrine

Sunday 11th February

Peter Brown: 2 Black-necked Grebe & Mediterranean Gull.

Richard Horton: Jack Snipe.

Dina Burford: Green Sandpiper & Snipe.

(c) Colin Varndell - Long-tailed Tit

Monday 12th February

Don Lemmon: Jack Snipe, 2 Black-necked Grebe & Dartford Warbler.

Peter Brown: 2 Green Sandpiper.

Susan Keirnan: 2 Raven.

(c) Colin Varndell - Deer

(c) Colin Varndell - Grey Wagtail

Tuesday 13th February

Anon: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Wednesday 14th February

Peter Brown: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

(c) Colin Varndell - Carrion Crow

Thursday 15th February

Peter Brown: Green Sandpiper & 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Dina Burford: 2 Snipe.

Dina Burford: Red Admiral & Brimstone (first of year).

(c) Rebecca Haskell - Crocus

(c) Dina Burford - Stonechat

(c) Colin Varndell - Fieldfare

Friday 16th February

Mark Elsoffer: 2 Black-necked Grebe & c200 Fieldfare.

Thanks to the 19 volunteers, including the Surrey Choices Growth Team, who spent today chopping up nestbox parts ready for tomorrow’s Nestbox Buildathon at the Kiln.

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

Saturday 17th February

What a great turnout we had today for our Nestbox Buildathon at the Kiln - over 100 people took part building and decorating 100 nest boxes for the local community. Great to be working in partnership again with Surrey Hills Society and Surrey Choices. We so enjoy working with both teams, and we’re looking forward to developing our partnership moving forward. Especially if Surrey Choices keep buying us cakes!

Thanks to the Badshot Lea Community Association Garden for opening up and helping out. Thanks to Katie and Debbie for expertly running the box decorating. And thanks to Dina (for being the one organised person in a sea of chaos), Andy for being teaboy, Kelly for her delicious cakes, Don for collecting & returning the marquee, and all of the other volunteers who helped make it such a big success. 

We hope all the garden birds in Badshot Lea and Aldershot enjoy their new homes. Do send us photos of your boxes up in your gardens, and let us know if they get used. 

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Nestbox Buildathon

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Nestbox Buildathon

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Nestbox Buildathon

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Nestbox Buildathon

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Nestbox Buildathon

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Nestbox Buildathon

(c) Clare Power - 1st Aldershot Brownies

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebe

(c) Jon Hawkins - Grey Heron

Sunday 18th February

Peter Brown: 2 Green Sandpiper & 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Colin Varndell: Little Grebe & 2 Siskin.

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebe

(c) Jon Hawkins - Stonechat

(c) Jon Hawkins - Tufted Duck

(c) Colin Varndell - Siskin

(c) Colin Varndell - Siskin

Monday 19th February

Mike Huddie: 2 Black-necked Grebe, Cetti's Warbler, Chiffchaff & Green Woodpecker.

(c) Colin Varndell - Black-necked Grebes

Tuesday 20th February

Peter Brown: 2 Green Sandpiper & 2 Black-necked Grebe.

(c) Dave Binks - Roe Deer

Wednesday 21st February

No reports.

Thursday 22nd February

(c) Colin Varndell - Sunset over the Meadow

Friday 23rd February

M Scott: 3 Siskin.

Anon: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Ruben Cowley: Kingfisher.

Mark Elsoffer: 6 Snipe.

A huge thank you to the sixteen volunteers, including the wonderful Surrey Choices Growth Team, who spent today cutting and burning willow in the reed beds. This is our last willow cutting work party of the winter as bird nesting season starts next week. I think it’s been our best winter yet for willow cutting. The reed beds look wonderful. Thanks to our Friday Irregulars and the Growth Team for all of their hard work.

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Mark Elsoffer - Work Party

(c) Colin Varndell - Egyptian Goose

(c) Colin Varndell - Nuthatch

(c) Peter Bowles - Reed Bunting

Saturday 24th February

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebes

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebe

(c) Jon Hawkins - Tufted Duck

(c) Wild Cam - Reed Bunting

(c) Chris Marney - Kestrel

Sunday 25th February

Peter Brown: 2 Black-necked Grebe.

Richard Seargent: Green Sandpiper.

Colin Varndell: Snipe.

(c) Colin Varndell - Blackbird

(c) Colin Varndell - Assorted Ducks

Monday 26th February

Richard Horton: Green Sandpiper.

(c) Cat Lawton - Woodland Track

(c) Colin Varndell - Fieldfare

(c) Colin Varndell - Shoveler

Tuesday 27th February

Richard Horton: 2 Green Sandpiper.

(c) Colin Varndell - Reed Bunting

(c) Colin Varndell - Wren

Wednesday 28th February

John Hunt: 2 Green Sandpiper & 2 Snipe.

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebe

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebe

(c) Jon Hawkins - Great Crested Grebe

Thursday 29th February

No reports.