This week there has been a lot of activity from our resident Marsh frogs. This species of frog is an introduced non-native species, which was brought to Kent in the 1930's by a private collector. The marsh frogs ultimately escaped and are now found in several areas across Kent and East Sussex. You cannot mistake the sound of the marsh frogs when they are in chorus at this time of year. They are very loud when they are all calling together and sound like a laughing audience. This gives them the nickname of the laughing frog. Listen to their cackling as you walk round the reserve. They are particularly obvious near smaller ponds, ditches and reedbed areas.

Marsh frog - Ben Andrew

Some behind the scenes magic is happening in our greenhouse. Edith, one of our Interns has been lovingly planting and caring for 301 pots of marsh mallow plants! Marsh mallows grow in Europe, West Asia and North Africa used as an ornamental and medicinal plant. A confection made from the root of the marsh mallow plant since the Ancient Egyptian time, evolved into today's marshmallow sweet (which now does not contain any extract of the marsh mallow). The root of the marsh mallow plant was also (and still is) used as a traditional remedy for a sore throat.

We plant marsh mallows on the reserve because it is the main food plant for the larvae of the marsh mallow moth. The moth is restricted in Britain to a few scattered areas throughout Kent and East Sussex. We have them here on the reserve and wish to conserve their strong hold in this area by planting enough marsh mallows for the caterpillars to thrive on.

Marsh mallows planted in our greenhouse - Edith Collins

Marsh mallow flower - H. Zell (wikimedia commons)

Many of our wonderful waders have left us now, providing a fantastic viewing spectacle for over three weeks. They've moved on further north to their breeding habitats. We have 6 Lapwing nests in our fields so fingers crossed for some successful fledglings! There also looks like Avocet might be nesting on Burrowes pit. Common Terns have also been showing mating and nesting behaviour. We'll keep an eye out and keep you posted. We've had a confirmation that a gull-billed tern had landed on Burrowes pit for a brief spell. We've also had Iceland gull, little gull and arctic tern as well as a bee eater flying over the reserve earlier on this week. 

Marsh and leopard marsh orchids are flowering beautifully over at ARC. The leopard marsh orchid lives to its name with its distinct purple leopard spots on the leaves. They are found all over the south of the country and grow in damp meadows and marshes.

Leopard marsh orchid - Angela Wood