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News and Events Remember. it's Feed the Birds Day on 24th. - 25th. October. Click here for more details Birdwatching Cruise The Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle is running a Birdwatching cruise on Saturday 24th October leaving the Historic Dockyard Chatham at 10am back 4pm. The fares are adult £26, concession £24, child £14. the cruise usually sails down the Medway and into Stangate Creek
Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust (Trading) Ltd
01634 827648
Climate Change …the biggest single threat to wildlife & the environment…learn more about this huge issues and how you can support our campaign at our CLIMATE CHANGE ROADSHOW 6th
November 2009, 10.30am – 3.30pm We have pleasure in inviting you, a valued RSPB volunteer, to our Climate Change roadshow. A fantastic chance to learn more about the issues surrounding Climate Change and the RSPB’s involvement in the ‘Stop Climate Change Chaos Coalition’. Most importantly, it’s also a great opportunity to find out what you can do to help us motivate as many people as possible to become part of the ‘The Wave’ at the Stop Climate Change Chaos Rally in London on Saturday 5th December (for more information on ‘The Wave’ see www.stopclimatechaos.org/the-wave ) Staff from our Climate Change Team at our headquarters in Sandy will be leading the day. So, if you’ve got any burning questions about this hugely important issue, here’s your opportunity to ask the experts! You’ll also get to meet other RSPB volunteers plus staff from the South East region who will be there on the day. We will provide a sandwich lunch and refreshments. We really hope you can come along to this roadshow! If so, I'd be grateful if you could let me know asap, no later than Friday 23rd Oct, also whether you have any special dietary requirements or other special requirements we need to be aware of. We'll then email you a map of how to find the venue, plus more detailed agenda. Look look forward to hearing
from you soon. Jenny Sweet
Media Release 12 October 2009 RSPB reserve is
top spot to star spot Meteor showers are formed when the Earth travels through a stream of debris left by comets as they circle the sun. People on the ground looking up are likely to see hundreds of shooting stars lighting up the sky. Away from urban populations and with big open skies, the RSPB’s Northward Hill site provides an excellent venue for stargazing. To celebrate the International Year of Astronomy, the RSPB has invited astronomy lecturer, Mike Keskeys, to run an event at Northward Hill on Wednesday October 21 to coincide with the meteor shower. Under clear skies, meteor showers can be seen clearly with the naked eye. However, looking through Mike’s telescopes visitors will get a close up view of the shower, and will be able to view planets, galaxies and star formations. The RSPB’s Damian Fleming said “It might seem strange to have a astronomy event on a RSPB reserve. But this is all part of our programme to connect more people with nature. In visiting the site at night, people will still witness its beauty and tranquility, and have the chance to see nocturnal animals such as owls and badgers.” The event starts at 8.30pm and visitors are encouraged to bring blankets, chairs and warm clothes. For further
details about this event please ring 01634 222480 or visit
www.rspb.org.uk/northwardhillevents.
Media Release 6 October 2009 Medway is home for Med gulls
RSPB wardens Gordon Allison and Matt May travel out to the RSPB Medway sites on a small boat to record the birds. Gordon commented: “The trip out to record birds in our little boat is always quite an experience and we always have plenty of birds for company.” Gordon added: “It is very exciting to have such a significant breeding population of this special bird right on our doorstep. A real success story.” The RSPB also monitor other seabirds on the Medway, including the largest colony of Sandwich terns in the south-east, and Kent’s only colony of little terns. The RSPB site of Nor Marsh is an island and is not open to the public in order to protect it from disturbance. However, the nearby Motney Hill RSPB reserve and Riverside Country Park affords great views over the Medway and provides a great vantage point to view the gulls and the thousands of other birds that use the estuary as a migration route. With the winter migration from the Artic to Africa already underway, the Riverside Country Park has organised series of bird themed events in October and November, hosted by the RSPB. ‘Autumnwatch at the Riverside’ will take place all day on the October 17 and 18, and again on November 7, 8, 14 and 15. The RSPB’s Damian Fleming said: “Visitors will have a chance to see one of the Mediterranean gulls, but are guaranteed to witness the spectacle of thousands of migrant birds passing though. People visiting the park can drop by and learn more about the winter migration and see the birds close up through our telescopes.” For further details about this event please ring 01634 222480 or visit www.rspb.org.uk/northwardhillevents.
Media Release 30 June 2009 Early success for environmental partnership Breeding wader numbers have trebled on the RSPB’s newest reserve in Kent and four new species have been found on site, the wildlife charity can reveal. Two years ago the RSPB, Natural England, Swale Borough Council and Canterbury City Council formed a partnership to buy 100 hectares of land on the Seasalter Levels, close to the popular tourist spot of Whitstable. The new reserve is managed by the RSPB and consists mainly of grazing marsh - essential for wading birds such as lapwing and redshank. Huge areas of this land type have been lost across the UK to agriculture and development, signaling alarm bells among conservationists. Dave Rogers, Natural England’s Senior Reserve Manager for Kent says: “Since 1930 we have lost over two-thirds of coastal grazing marsh along the Thames. We desperately need projects like this to redress the balance.” The early signs at Seasalter are good. RSPB’s area manager Alan Johnson said: “We are delighted with the increases in breeding lapwing and redshank. We have also recorded species there for the very first time such as the hobby, red-eyed damselfly and slowworms. All this suggests we are doing a great job.” The partnership is looking to buy more land in order to increase the area of the nature reserve. Much of the remaining land is held by a large number of small landowners in an area known as ‘plotlands’. Last year eight new pieces of land were purchased and Alan Johnson is looking for more landowners to come forward: “We would be very happy to talk to anyone interested in selling a plot of land on Whitstable Bay or Viking Estates.” Anyone interested in
selling plots should contact Alan Johnson on 01634 222480.
Our Events from September 2009 to December 2009
Indoor Presentations
15 September- Norfolk. A Personal View - Steve Rowland 20 October - Recovering the UK`s threatened birds - Gwyn Williams 17 November - The Kingfisher - David Boag. 15 December - Santas Home Patch - Jolm Wyatt
See Indoor Programme for More Information
Outdoor Visits Sunday 2 August — Oare Marshes KWT Reserve - 9.00 am Saturday 22 August - Samphire IHoe -9.30 am Sunday 6 September- Pegwell Bay/Sandwich Bay Observatory - 10.00 am Saturday 26 September - Dungeness RSPB Reserve - 10.00 am Saturday 10 October ~ Cliffe Pools RSPB Reserve - 9.00 am Sunday 25 October · Conyer Creek - 9.00 am Sunday 8 November - Capel Fleet Raptor Viewpoint/Elmley RSPB Reserve - 9.00 am Saturday 2l November - Bedgebury Pinetum - l2 Noon Saturday 5 December - Reculver Country Park (East Of Towers) - l0.00 am See Outdoor
Programme for More Information
Public Events
Wednesday 5 August - Safari Fun Day, Cliffe Pools Sunday 6 September - North Kent Marshes, Wildlife & Country Fair, Bromhey Farm. Saturday I2 to Sunday 13 September - Kent Autumn Garden Show, Detling Saturday 31 October to Sunday l November - Kent Coastal Week. Riverside Country Park. Monday 9 to Saturday 14 November - Sales Stall. Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre.
Talks for Your Event
If you would like someone to come along to your event and give a presentation of the work that the RSPB is involved in, then don't hesitate to contact us.
Email Peter Saville at peter.saville@kent.pnn.police.uk for more details.
North Kent Marshes Nature Reserves Programme of Events
The new publicity manager, Damian Fleming, has decided that in future the above will be published in monthly form. This means that it is no longer practical to give you a copy of the current programme with our Newsletter. In future copies will be made available at Indoor Meetings and can be seen on our Website via http://www.medway-rspb.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/news%20&%20events.htm
Lydd Airport Expansion Contact
the groups fighting this by clicking on their links below Keep the Marsh Special Alliance
or go to the RSPB Campaign page, Campaign With Us
Group News
There are some tasks that do not require election to the committee, such as collecting and sorting stamps for the RSPB. If you feel that you have something to offer, no matter how small, please contact Marie Tilley or any committee member.
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