Topics: Volunteering

Swale Practical Volunteer Team

Join our dedicated team who work on our reserves across Swale. Including Oare Marshes and South Swale to Cromers in Sittingbourne and Spuckles Wood in Stalisfield. Help us manage habitats for people and wildlife!

June on Hothfield Heathlands

We have had the driest spring since 1956, with river and stream flow already well below average for the time of year, a worry for everyone. Area Manager Ian Rickards reports that “this crazy weather has been beneficial for some insects, but the vegetation is already struggling, which will have a knock-on effect other insects later in the year. Water levels are dropping dramatically, with ponds and water bodies drying out very quickly.” The livestock have water troughs but the thin layer of peat in the bogs can dry out easily and be eroded by wind when exposed as plants adapted to damp conditions wither. The successive broods of nestling birds mostly eat insects and larvae, which provide moisture as well as protein, so they are also at risk.

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