• The tree hiding in the woods

    Tim Webb

    One of the UK's foremost experts on trees has stumbled across what's believed to be the countries first naturalised Japanese cherry tree, Prunus 'Kanzan'.

    They normally grow from grafted stock, but this example appears to have grown from seed, probably dropped by a passing bird as it flew over RSPB Fore Wood near Battle in East Sussex. It's in bloom right now (April 2018) surrounded by bluebells in a…

  • Hear Lodge Hill's nightingales for yourself

    Sara H

    The nightingales are arriving back at Lodge Hill...

     

    ...and you have a chance to hear them in person on our free guided walk: next Tuesday 24 April, 7.30pm. It is by advance booking only due to limited places – please email katie.thatcher@rspb.org.uk, or ring 01634 222480 (weekdays only) to book your place.

     

    Adrian Thomas, our #SaveLodgeHill project manager, was at Lodge Hill yesterday filming with Channel 4…

  • Saving South East species: Migratory birds

    Sara H

    As spring arrives, we start to get tagged in more and more migratory bird sightings on Twitter and Facebook, with reports of swifts, swallows, nightingales and little terns rolling in fast.

    This year we’ve even had reports of unusual migrants, such as this striking bluethroat making a brief stop off at RSPB Dungeness, Kent.

    This annual influx of breeding birds is an exciting time; our reserves feel full of life…

  • Up with the sun this morning?

    Sara H

    You might have caught our RSPB Rainham Marshes site manager, Andrew Gouldstone, live on BBC Breakfast. BBC Weather presenter, Sarah Keith-Lucas popped down to the reserve, a short hop from London city centre, to discover the sights and sounds of the dawn chorus.

    Back in the newsroom, BBC presenter, Naga Munchetty said that RSPB Rainham Marshes at dawn 'looked even better than the Gold Coast'; high praise indeed!…

  • Discover a Date with Nature

    Sara H

    We have around 30 RSPB reserves in the South East, and we know many of you love to escape to the countryside with us to visit them, but have you ever taken a closer look at the wildlife on your own doorstep?

    Our Date with Nature events are aimed at helping people spot the wildlife around them; from peregrines perched on urban buildings, to goshawks nesting high in a forest canopy, or herons nesting in a busy city centre…