REGULAR drivers on the A420 will be familiar with animals at the roadside - mostly badgers and birds sadly hit while braving the busy road.

But a towering eight-foot tall giraffe, majestic eagle and tiny tortoise might prompt a few bemused second-glances.

Those are just some of the creatures to make up a menagerie that has returned to the main road near The Greyhound pub, courtesy of a skilled group of wood carvers.

Bryn Askham has brought his business Askham For Carving back to Oxfordshire, selling a crowd of wooden sculptures made by himself and some of his colleagues.

The carver lives near Radnorshire in Wales but tours his moving business around the UK's roadsides, and said he makes about four stops a year in Oxfordshire.

Motorists have become fond of his lifelike display in Besselsleigh, which populates a patch of grass near Besselsleigh Road.

It is also a spot favoured by his friend and fellow animal wood carver Woodrow Beeching, who was featured in the Oxford Mail last year.

Mr Askham, 37, said: "We are always by the roadside so we can get passing trade.

"The feedback we get is really good - people love it.

"I've been carving for 20 years now and I've come to know what people will like."

The Welshman runs the business alongside his 17-year-old son Kaspian Askham and two apprentice carvers.

They stay in one spot for several weeks at a time in a campervan, and often use the roadside as their workshop while they perfect new pieces.

Mr Askham some of his favourite creations currently are his giraffe and Kaspian's bear climbing a tree.

Others animals in the safari-like scene include gorillas, elephants and dolphins.

Asked why he loved carving so much, he said: "It's just that you are always learning, which keeps me interested."

The team use a variety of types of wood to create their masterpieces, and also make other items such as mushrooms aside from animals.

They have been on the A420 for most of this month and Mr Askham said he expected to stay along the road for another couple of weeks before heading off elsewhere.

The exhibition is usually displayed 7am-7pm on weekdays.