Tree Pipit returns to Hothfield Heathlands

After an absence of nearly 10 years, visitors to Hothfield Heathlands nature reserve can once again hear the distinctive call of the Tree Pipit.

The tree pipit (Anthus trivialis) is a heathland bird that nests amongst long grass or heather on the ground. To attract a mate it will perch on top of tall lonely trees, and then suddenly fly straight up before parachuting down on open wings – the call becoming more and more intense as it returns to its perch.

Ian Rickards, the Trust’s Ashford Area Warden, said: “The tree pipit has been declining over much of the South East partly due to the loss of its desired habitat. It needs lots of open space, with heather or other low-growing scrub and the occasional tree to use as a display perch.  The return to Hothfield Heathlands is a wonderful indication that the heathland restoration works carried out over the last five years are really working.”

June is a particularly good month to visit Hothfield Heathlands. As well as a cacophony of songbirds, there is a whole host of flowering plants, including orchids, and lots of dragonflies,  some of which are not found anywhere else in Kent.
Hothfield Heathlands are jointly owned by Ashford Borough Council and Kent Wildlife Trust and are managed by the Trust as one of their 60 county-wide nature reserves.

 

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