Dry, hot and sunny for our meeting at @kentwildlife.bsky.social's new Ironhurst Valley Nature Reserve last Saturday. The reserve straddles the boundary between Watsonian West Kent and East Sussex, marked in places just by a small ditch and crossed by a tiny bridge.

Three of the six Blue-winged Grasshoppers found at Reculver (North Kent coast) on 25th July.

Highlight of our field meeting last weekend near Deal - this nymph of the shieldbug Arma custos, swept by Laurence Clemons. A species found new to the UK in 2024 by Simon Warry, and this nymph confirms that it's now breeding here. #UKBugs #Shieldbugs @britishbugs.bsky.social @rockwolf74.bsky.social

Around the cornfield edges on chalk at #St.Margarets, keeping my eyes peeled for the scarce #arableplant Venus-looking glass,kept company by at least four widely scattered "singing"Quail.No luck with that #plant, but did find others inc; Dwarf Spurge,Narrow fruited Cornsalad,Dense fl;Fumitory.

Very pleased to have @graemelyons.bsky.social as a speaker at the Kent Wildlife Conference this October, talking on "Pan-species listing – how to become a super-naturalist". Open to all: go to tinyurl.com/WildConf2026 for details & booking. #pansspecies #panspecieslisting #biologicalrecording

Looking forward to our field meeting there in a couple of weeks' time, where we'll be helping to collect some baseline species records.

Kent Wildlife Trust@kentwildlife.bsky.social · 3w ago

Ironhurst Valley is only just beginning its restoration journey — this early stage takes real resources. 🌾 Area Manager Dan shows what's happening now: wildflower seeding to stabilise soils, and wetlands planned to help protect Lamberhurst from flooding. Donate at kwtg.uk/back-from-the-brink

The KOS is organising a Family Bird Day at Dungeness RSPB on 16 August. Free for members and non-members. Several activities planned - see flyer. Please sign up via admin@kentos.org.uk. And do share with friends who might be interested. Thanks.

Last Saturday, we were in the Low Weald, in meadows & wet woodland being managed with conservation in mind. Common insects included the tortoise beetle Cassida vibex, while wet woodland held big stands of Yellow Loosestrife & the scarce Yellow-loosestrife Bee Macropis europaea. #KentNature #Bees

A further thought on this - it would be worth comparing sown with unsown new meadows to see how/if sowing affects subsequent colonisation by unsown species.

George McGavin@georgemcgavin.bsky.social · 4w ago

It's great to know how quickly nature can restore itself when we stop damaging it. It's high time we put nature first, for without it, we are nothing. www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2026/ju...

To quote from the piece: "our study poses the question: should we be employing patience over seed packet more often?” Yes we should, if we want rich, vibrant plant communities as part of nature recovery.

George McGavin@georgemcgavin.bsky.social · 4w ago

It's great to know how quickly nature can restore itself when we stop damaging it. It's high time we put nature first, for without it, we are nothing. www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2026/ju...

Delighted that Murray Orchard of @kentishplover.bsky.social will be a speaker at this year's Kent Wildlife Conference. He's talking on 'Kent’s Nightingales - mining the data, tracking the birds, and strategies for their recovery'. Go to tinyurl.com/WildConf2026 for details & booking. #kentbirding

www.gov.uk/government/n...

Over 350 threatened species to benefit from record investment

130 projects encompassing 364 threatened species to receive funding of £60 million from Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme

gov.uk

A New Atlas of the Kent Flora (by Eric Philp, published 2010) has long been out of print. However, we've now been able to make available a downloadable PDF version. 350 pages long, and with more than 1,100 colour distribution maps. Get it here for just £5: www.kentfieldclub.org.uk/a-new-atlas-...

John Rowland of @dice-kent.bsky.social will be speaking on "Great Crested Newts: what mark-recapture can tell us that traditional surveys can’t" at this year's Kent Wildlife Conference - one of a great line-up of speakers & subjects. For details & booking, go to tinyurl.com/WildConf2026 #herpetology

John Rowland of @dice-kent.bsky.social will be speaking on "Great Crested Newts: what mark-recapture can tell us that traditional surveys can’t" at this year's Kent Wildlife Conference - one of a great line-up of speakers & subjects. For details & booking, go to tinyurl.com/WildConf2026 #herpetology

Sandwich Bay: cool & overcast (makes a change) but still muggy conditions. Red-veined Darters, S. fonscolombii, paired & ovipositing in the Dragonfly Pond. Nearby a Scorpionfly (Scorpion Fly?), Panorpa sp., feeding on a Ruby Tiger, P. fuliginosa, presumably scavenged from a spider's web #KentNature

A walk around #Woodlandstrust #Huckingestate yesterday morning 17 species of Butterfly including Purple Hairstreak, Ringlets,Painted Lady, Small Skipper, large Skippers, White Admiral, Dark Green Fritillary etc and at least 30 Hummingbird Hawk-moths. #kentnature @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A good day for Orthoptera recording yesterday with @kentfieldclub.bsky.social at Upper Mystole Patk Farm on the edge of Denge Woods. 5 grasshopper species, 2 groundhoppers & 2 bush-crickets. Stripe-winged Grasshopper & Cepero's Groundhopper were new hectad records. #KentNature #orthoptera

What happened to the late Francis Rose's long planned Flora of Kent? Find out at this year's Kent Wildlife Conference, from @bsbibotany.bsky.social vice-county recorder, Geoffrey Kitchener, just one of a full line-up of speakers. Go to tinyurl.com/WildConf2026 for details & booking. #KentBotany

Leptarthrus vitripennis, with its red legs and short thoracic pile, is a rare chalk downland robberfly, seemingly confined to the North Downs and Chilterns. Maidstone last week. First time I’ve seen it in 25(?) years.

I had a lovely time at Sandwich Bay the other day, spotting members of the fabulous Fabaceae: Clustered Clover Rough Clover Bur Medick Toothed Medick Subterranean Clover Lesser Trefoil Hop Trefoil Haresfoot Clover Common Restharrow Greater Birdsfoot Trefoil

News from the Medway estuary www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Moves to protect 'climate hero' Medway estuary saltmarshes

Scientists are meeting to discuss what needs to be done to protect the north Kent marshland.

bbc.co.uk

Social media are great communication tools for naturalists, but you can't beat face-to-face. The Kent Wildlife Conference on 24 October is for anyone interested in the county's natural history. Book today www.tinyurl.com/WildConf2026.

On Saturday, we visited The Downs, Herne Bay, a section of regraded and stabilized clay sea-cliff. Hog's Fennel and Shrubby Sea-blite were botanical highlights, while invertebrates included Long-horned Bee Eucera longicornis, and Brown-banded Carder Bee Bombus humilis. #KentNature

Good news! Ministers have finally given green light to new #NaturalHistory GCSE. We’ve campaigned so long for this! Big hats off to tireless advocate Mary Colwell 🙌 Now our young people will have a chance to get to know & love the natural world, to feel awe & wonder, & gain skills to protect it 🌷🌳🦡

Natural history GCSE to teach teenagers to plant wildflower-friendly gardens

Long-awaited course to examine human effects on natural world and explore everyday ways to aid biodiversity

theguardian.com

The Kent Wildlife Conference is always busy, engaging, exciting - and this year's (on Sat 24 October) will be no different. Subjects include Nightingales, GCNs & Francis Rose's 'lost' Flora of Kent. You really don't want to miss out. Really. Full details & booking here: tinyurl.com/WildConf2026

Bonsai Bank, an awesome chalky glade. Ten orchid species seen including hundreds of Lady Orchids, the star species here; Most Ladys were frazzled by the May heatwave but several seen in good flower

If you've enjoyed our book about Ranscombe Farm, and want to see the place & the plants face-to-face (or if you haven't got the book, but would like a copy at the bargain price of £9), then why not join the free guided walk with the author on Weds 10 June? Details & booking here tinyurl.com/yc7rtpmn

An excellent trip, despite rainy interludes, to Hangrove bank near Downe with @kentfieldclub.bsky.social Walking in Darwin’s footsteps we saw orchids galore, grasshoppers, bugs and a highlight was seeing a small blue butterfly.

A couple of places still available for my upcoming tour at New Hythe. The Lesser Emperors are on the wing now. www.naturetrek.co.uk/tours/the-dr.... @britishdragonflies.bsky.social #KentDragonflies

The Dragonflies of New Hythe, Kent (Day Trip) - Naturetrek

Join Kent dragonfly recorder, photographer and birder, Marc Heath, in the garden of England, Kent where we will spend our day at New Hythe G...

naturetrek.co.uk