2020 | 2019 │ 2018 │ 2017 │ 2016
Monday 7th March, 2022: Woking Peregrine Project
James Sellen, Woking Peregrine Project Team
James has been involved with the Woking Peregrine Project since it started in 2015. The last seven years have been very eventful – no breeding season is the same as they witness local Peregrines’ complex, savage and intimate lifestyle. Since the Project started, James has learnt much about the world’s fastest avian predator and taken numerous photos of these charismatic Peregrines, some of which will help illustrate this talk. With the generous assistance of many individuals and organisations, the Project has been able to help the ongoing breeding success of the Peregrine – a bird of prey that very nearly became extinct as a UK breeding species not many years ago.
Monday 10th January, 2022: The Wildlife of Pewley Down and Meadows
Jonathan Mitchell, Chair of Pewley Down Volunteers
Pewley Down is a small but important chalk downland nature reserve 15 minutes’ walk from the centre of Guildford, home to much scarce wildlife. The area under protection has been substantially expanded with the acquisition by the community and partners of the adjacent Pewley Meadows in 2021.
Monday November 1st: White Storks – Lucy Groves, Knepp White Stork Project Officer
White storks are breeding in the UK for the first time in hundreds of years.
Monday October 4th: Bat Ecology and Conservation by Ross Baker, Surrey Bat Group Chairman
Given by Ross Baker we explored the range of international and UK bats, with an emphasis on those found in Surrey. Ross is the chairman of Surrey Bat Group having worked with bats in Surrey for over 35 years with Bat Group projects, as a Natural England Volunteer Bat Roost Visitor and trainer, as a consultant (now retired) and as an independent researcher specialising in the rarer woodland bats of Surrey.
Monday September 6th: Hazel Dormice – Dave Williams, mammal expert
Hazel dormouse photo by Frank Vassen under creative commons
All about Hazel Dormice – habits, habitats, hibernation and how we can help them
Sat 14th August – Walk at Tices Meadow
April 2021 – Gilbert White the Gardener – David Standing
Naturalist Gilbert White (1720-1793) is sometimes known as the father of modern ecology. David Standing, the Head Gardener at the Gilbert White Museum in Selborne, Hampshire from 1979 to 2017 gave us a fascinating talk. It follows the detective story of finding out the original layout and planting of his grounds, and made particular reference to White’s natural history observations in his garden.
Below is the list of plant names found in the garden……….
| English Name | Latin name |
| French marigold | Tagetes patula |
| African Marigold | Tagetes erecta |
| Kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate | Persicaria orientalis |
| Venus looking glass | Legousia speculum-veneris |
| Flower-of-an-hour | Hibiscus trionum |
| Blue convolvulus | Covolvulus tricolur ‘Blue Ensign’ |
| Curled Mallow | Malva vericillata ‘Crispa’ |
| Painted Lady sweet pea | Lathyrus odoratus ‘Painted Lady’ |
| Clary Sage ‘Turkestanica’ | Salvia sclarea ‘Turkestanica’ |
| Marvel of Peru | Mirabilis jalapa |
| Hollyhock (single flowered) | Alcea rosea |
| Gold Laced Polyanthus | Primula x polyantha ‘Gold Lace’ |
| Chimney Bellflower | Campanula pyramidalis |
| French Honeysuckle | Hedysarum coronarium |
| Rusty Foxglove | Digitalis ferruginea |
| White Sweet Rocket | Hesperis matronalis albiflora |
| Double sweet rocket | Hesperis matronalis alba-plena |
| Burning Bush | Dictamnus fraxinella |
| Crown Imperial | Fritillaria imperialis |
| Dragon arum | Dracunculus vulgaris |
| Double Hyacinth | Hyacinths orientalis double var |
| Martagon Lily | Lilium martagon |
| Madonna lily | Lilium candidum |
| Purslane | Portulaca oleracea subsp sativa |
| Skirret | Sium sisarum |
| Cardoon | Cynara cardunculus |
| Celeriac | Apium graveolens var rapaceum |
| Apple Nonpareil | Malus domestica ‘Nonpareil’ |
| Medlar | Mespilus germanica |
| Quince | Cydonia oblonga |
| Pear Catillac | Pyrus comunis ‘Catillac’ |
| Melon | Cucumis melo |
| Apothecaries Rose | Rosa gallica officinalis |
| Rosa Mundi | Rosa gallica officinalis versicolour |
| Rose Celeste | Rosa alba ‘Celeste’ |
| Rose Ville de Bruxelles’ | Rosa damascena ‘Ville de Bruxelles’ |
| Rose Rambling Rector | Rosa sp (Rambler group) Rambling Rector |
| Austrian Briar | Rosa foetida |
| Rose Mannings Blush | Rosa rubiginosa ‘Mannings Blush’ |
| Giant Reed | Arundo donax |
| Scorpionsenna | Hippocrepis emerus |
| Laurestinus | Viburnum tinus |
| Laurel | Prunus laurocerasus |
| Holm Oak | Quercus ilex |
| Tulip Tree | Liriodendron tulipifera |
| Cedar of Lebanon | Cedrus libani |
March 2021 – Birds of the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Antarctica
Treasure Hunt – Jan/Feb 2021
Check out the treasure hunt for nature on Normandy Common. The competition is closed now, but you can still answer the quiz and look for the answers on the Common.