Fencing Work at Fleet Pond

A new stock fence is being installed at Fleet Pond on the Eastern side. We apologise for any disturbance caused.

It is important to replace the old fencing as it will not only look a lot neater but will hopefully keep the grazing stock in and keep wandering dogs out of this sensitive habitat of reed bed and marsh.

Whilst the fencing is being replaced the area will be temporarily open as the contractors work. Please keep dogs close to the main path and do not let them wander into the reed beds as they may disturb nesting birds.

Please do not walk into the marsh that is being re-fenced, as the water is deep in places and you could sink unexpectedly!

Thank you for your continued support, Ranger Rachel.

Baby Blue Tits!

Ranger Rachel had the opportunity to assist with some bird ringing at Fleet Pond SSSI last weekend.

Our bird ringer Martin had a successful morning ringing 25 different species in the reed beds on the edge of the pond.

This Blue Tit chick was nesting in one of the special bird boxes installed previously by ranger Louise Clewley. They were about a week old, six altogether!

The Elvetham Heath Girls!

The cows are back on Elvetham Heath to help us manage this beautiful Nature Reserve.

This year they are starting their munching on the northern side as there are lots of Birch saplings that, if left unchecked, will dominate the vegetation and out compete the specialist heathland flora. The cattle do a great job of nipping off the tops of the saplings and suppressing their growth.

This year you will see four lovely Irish Moiled cows:

• With ear tag number 72 is Flower. She still has an udder full of milk where she had been weaning her calf. 
• Number 96 is Geranium who is the other older cow. She is a little warty but still healthy! 
• Number 260 is Parachute, back again this year, a little bigger and older. 
• Number 262 is Primrose, the other smaller lady. 

Please help us keep a close eye on them as they settle in and keep all dogs under very close control. 

Thank you Vince at Elvetham for being a great volunteer 'cattle looker' for us again this year! 

Thank you! Ranger Rach. 

Cattle at Fleet Pond

Today Miller's Ark delivered some fine animals full of character to Fleet Pond!

Ollie is the big old steady boy. Kipper is the younger one that follows him everywhere and is very shy.

The two Belted Galloway's are ladies called Heather and Nancy.

They will be on Wood Lane Heath for a few weeks, chomping on the scrub and Purple Moor Grass.

Please help us keep a close eye on them and keep dogs under very close control around and within Wood Lane.

Thank you!

Ranger Rach.

Dog Vomit Slime Mold!

Ranger Rachel spotted this Dog Vomit Slime Mold at Elvetham Heath.

In its growth stage this yellowish, foamy slime mold is an irregular mass that "creeps" gradually over wood mulch or other decaying material, engulfing and consuming bacteria, yeasts and fungi. It sometimes bleeds dark fluid and can look a little like dog vomit, hence its lovely name. In its spore producing stage it dries and hardens; becoming darker in colour, eventually becoming a mass of dark and dusty spores.

Creeping gradually across decaying wood, it can sometimes creep on to nearby living plants. These mysterious organisms are said to be the inspiration for the 1958 movie 'The Blob'! Stranger still, if you run water on to its spore producing stage, the water either rolls of it without moistening it or else a cloud of spores rise up like smoke, helping to spread it further.

Its not poisonous but I doubt it makes pleasant eating, although reportedly it is eaten in Mexico!

This is one of many strange but important organisms that have a crucial role in ecosystems, feasting on decaying organic materials and the microbes that inhabit them. They have an incredibly important role in breaking down the tough materials living things are made of and returning those nutrients to the soil.

Fleet Pond Bird Ringing

Bird ringer Martin Cooper and his team were at Fleet Pond SSSI on Easter Monday morning. They managed to tidy up all of the net rides and get all of the CES (constant effort site) nets up without too many problems. They caught 10 birds, of which 7 were birds that had not been ringed before.

They ringed 3 Reed Bunting, 1 Whitethroat, 1 Wren, 1 Chaffinch and 1 Dunnock and 3 re-traps including a Reed Warbler which has made it to sub-Saharan Africa and back again!

Great results!

The Hazeley Heath Girls!

Ranger Rachel caught the cattle on Hazeley Heath having a lie in early this morning.

Fenella is the white Irish Moiled leader.
Paula is the largest Belted Galloway
Cumbria Girl is the middle one and
Isobella is the smallest one!

Easter Tree Trail at Fleet Pond

Hart District Councils Countryside Service held a fun and educational Easter event this weekend. A large number of families turned out on Friday and Saturday to earn their Easter Eggs by completing a challenging tree trail around Fleet Pond Local Nature Reserve.

Thanks to rangers Leigh, Adam and Rachel and the Fleet Pond Society for all their help running this event. There were only a few Easter Eggs left that we will save for our next conservation volunteer day!

The visiting public also enjoyed a wonderful view through binoculars of the Herons nesting on one of the islands that can be seen from the picnic area.

Another Great Fleet Pond Society Volunteer Day!

A fun day was had by all on Sunday with so many hard working volunteers. We had a nice mix of jobs to do and so split up into teams.

We collected brash along the footpaths, patched up fences, repaired eroding banks, and painted part of the new viewing point. Of course we had a bonfire to get rid of all the excess!

A lovely sunny day and a great turn out made it a real success. Thank you to all!

Ranger Rach.

Grazing on Hazeley Heath

Four lovely cows can now be seen grazing on Hazeley Heath for the fifth and final year of the Hazeley Heath Grazing Trial. One Irish Moiled ,who is the older lead cow, and three young Belted Galloway's.

Thank you to Miller's Ark for delivering them to us!

Please follow the Countryside Code in this area and keep your dogs under close control, making sure all gates are shut behind you when entering the grazing enclosure.

The cattle will be with us until the end of September hopefully doing a great job of munching the competitive grasses and opening up opportunities for some of the rare heathland flora to grow whilst poaching the ground for some wet loving species. This then provides a great habitat for lots of specialist invertebrates.

Fleet Pond Memorial Benches

We need your help!

The Countryside Service are trying to track down the sponsors of any of the memorial benches around the pond, especially in the Hemelite Bay area.

If you are a sponsor, or you know anyone who is, please contact us by emailing countryside@hart.gov.uk or calling 01252 623443.

Thank you

Spring has Sprung

While out and about in Church Crookham yesterday tree surveying, I couldn't help but notice how many trees and scrub were coming in to flower. There are some really showy Magnolia's and Cherries in private gardens, and Blackthorn, Goat Willow, Apple, Pear and Cherry in hedgerows and on Hart-owned spaces. 

One of my favourites is the Japanese Cherry with pink, double flowers. This is Prunus serrulata 'Kanzans'. 

Alongside other Cherries they look like sticks of Candy Floss with twice as many flowers. While not native, the flowers provide an important source of nectar in the early spring which encourages bees and butterflies to be drawn to them. I did notice a Small Tortoiseshell butterfly  on a Goat Willow flower but it flew off before I managed to get my camera to it. 

Many of the Cherries flowering now will bear fruit later on in the year. Some of these are quite edible although the native Cherry, Prunus avium, is incredibly sour and most people find them foul, however I am quite partial to these for some reason! 

Ranger Adam 

Conservation Grazing on Fugelmere Marsh

Despite very boggy conditions the fencing has been completed at Sandy Bay, Fleet Pond. Now this area will be able to regenerate as an extension to the rare marsh/wetland habitat and will allow rare breed cattle to help with the future conservation management of Fugelmere Marsh.

Lord Wandsworth Students Get Stuck In!

Students from Lord Wandsworth College cleared the footpath last Friday from the canal on to Odiham Common.

They helped rangers Rach and Will get stuck in to clearing the thorny scrub and brambles that were encroaching on the path right up to the fence line. We are very grateful for all their efforts.

Another great turnout for the Fleet Pond Society Volunteer Day on Sunday

Wow, what amazing weather we had! We were all rewarded with Brimstone and Peacock butterflies, and we counted up to 15 Herons flying over the islands.

The aim was to clear as much brash as possible from along the footpaths at Fleet Pond. These extra branches and logs were from the recent storms and previous volunteer parties. With the logs the team made log piles in the woods which will be valuable dead wood for insects. The brash was pulled out of the eastern marsh, thankfully the area is now just about dry enough to venture out there! Terry and Nick worked on the viewpoint and it's looking great! There was lots of interest from passers by.

We also had a team out on Fuglemere Marsh burning all the brash, some dragged from the marsh and some from nearby footpaths. We also reduced the huge pile off the dry heath.

There is still much to clear and tidy but this was a really great effort from all and we are very grateful to all our volunteers.

Bye for now, Ranger Rach.

BT Volunteer Day at Fleet Pond

Last Friday British Telecom came to Fleet Pond to help with the conservation work as part of their giving back to the community volunteer work.

They worked especially hard clearing a large portion of the encroaching Birch saplings off the heathland habitat. They enjoyed being out of the office and in the outdoors doing a valuable task.

The Fleet Pond Society were also working at incredible speed erecting the new Eastern Viewpoint platform. We all worked as one large team as some of the BT volunteers got stuck into digging out the new pathway to the view point in preparation for the surfacing that will go on top making it accessible for all.

Ranger Rachel was very grateful for all their hard work despite the showers!

Bye for now, Ranger Rach.

The Fleet Pond Society Sunday Volunteers

Despite a VERY poor stormy forecast we still had a great turnout for the FPS Sunday!

A few new people worked really hard and got stuck in as part of the team.

We had 3 tasks going on so there was lots of choice.

The main task was clearing bramble and branches off the old fence line along the North Eastern track.

A fair lot of pine saplings were also pulled up on the railway heath and more work was done to the Eastern Viewpoint by laying more sleepers. 

A great fire burnt up previously cut scrub and the pine trees that Fujitsu had cleared

were tractor and tailored over by Geoff and Carol with helpers to pop on the fire.

Michael and David Buckler managed the fire and we all got hot spuds at the end (Thanks Mavis).

Oh and Terry's portable oven!

A huge thanks to all involved and please remember to book in with Rach if you want to come on the next meeting (A few days before at least thank you).

Ranger Rach