• Let's go fly a kite...

    Unlike the multi-coloured fabric on string that the title suggests, we've had a few interesting birds of prey visit our reserve over the weekend. Both a Red and Black Kite were spotted over the reserve which provided some fantastic views for our visitors. Today, we had a Honey Buzzard over the ARC which is a summer visitor to the UK.

    Red kites - Ben Andrew

    One rarity that has also popped in is a male Ortolan B…

  • bird food offer

    Stock up on your birds' favourite at RSPB Dungeness with our new 20% off offer until 30th May 2017 on selected large 12.75 kg bird food sacks and seed mixes.


    Not sure what your birds would like?


    You want to make sure every bird in your garden gets the right kind of energy-rich bird food they need. 

     

    There a range of different bird seed mixes for feeders, bird tables and ground feeding, to suit species that…

  • Marsh frogs, marsh mallows and marsh orchids!

    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…

  • Take a closer look – binocular and telescope events May/June 2017

    Thinking of buying binoculars or a telescope? 

    Whether you know a bit or don't know where to start, come to the RSPB Dungeness Visitor Centre and get some hands on advice from our friendly, knowledgeable team and have the chance to try the products out.

    We are holding an events on Wednesday afternoons in May and June – our friendly staff and volunteers will be on hand to give advice and answer any queries.

  • A week of waders

    We've topped the charts with 20 different waders spotted on Burrowes pit this week. The list includes Oystercatcher, Avocet, Lapwing,Ringed Plover, Little Ringed Plover,Grey Plover, Turnstone, Curlew, Whimbrel, Ruff, Redshank, Common Sandpiper, Dunlin, Sanderling, Greenshank, Knot, Black-tailed Godwit, Little Stint, Snipe and Curlew Sandpiper!

    Common sandpiper - Andy Hay

    Wonderfully, most of these were seen from…

  • Waders and warblers everywhere!

    This is the time of year we love. A whole range of birds are now making Dungeness their home for the summer! We've had a huge increase in the amount of wading birds seen on the reserve over the last week as well as smaller birds such as whitethroat, nightingale, yellow wagtail and warblers such as sedge, reed and willow warblers. 

    Whitethroat - Vera Carpenter

    Although the lack of rain we have had over the past…

  • 20% off 12.75kg sacks of bird food over 2017 May Day weekend

    20% off 12.75kg sacks of bird food at the RSPB Dungeness shop over the May Day bank holiday weekend 29th April to 1st May 2017

    The visitor centre at RSPB Dungeness is open everyday from 10am to 5pm

  • Take a closer look – binocular and telescope event 29th, 30th April and 1st May and beyond

    Thinking of buying binoculars or a telescope? 

    Whether you know a bit or don't know where to start, come to the RSPB Dungeness Visitor Centre and get some hands on advice from our friendly, knowledgeable team and have the chance to try the products out.

    We are holding an event over the May bank holiday weekend - 29th and 30th April and 1st May – our friendly staff and volunteers will be on hand to give advice and…

  • Cuckoos are calling and bitterns are booming here at RSPB Dungeness!

    What a whirlwind few weeks it has been! Spring migrants have been flying in from all directions, booming has been heard from two male bitterns across the reserve and many birds are building their nests. The first cuckoo of the year was seen and heard yesterday which is the loveliest of sounds that fills you with joy knowing summer is on its way. 

    We've also had a nightingale on the reserve, another bird with an incredible…

  • Dungeness is alive with spring activity

    What a week for migrant activity! The week started off brilliantly with Monday bringing in a spoonbill, garganey, male smew and the ring-necked duck all on one pool! The entrance of the reserve was busy with visitors coming in to see these wonderful birds and it was great to have such a good view of them - but can I take a moment just to remind people not to park along the verges of the track and to use the designated…

  • Take a closer look – binocular and telescope event 1st and 2nd April and beyond

    Thinking of buying binoculars or a telescope? 

    Whether you know a bit or don't know where to start, come to the RSPB Dungeness Visitor Centre and get some hands on advice from our friendly, knowledgeable team and have the chance to try the products out.

    On 1st and 2nd April the Viking Optical representative will also be on hand both days to give advice and answer any queries

    We stock the RSPB range of binoculars…

  • Seabird island management at CEMEX quarry

    Kerton Road is just a stones throw from the Dungeness reserve and home to Denge quarry, a gravel extraction site owned by CEMEX. The islands created during gravel extraction offer a potential nesting site for a variety of breading sea birds such as gulls and terns.

    Our aim for the day was to clear two of the islands to create a more suitable breeding habitat. We have limited access to these islands and a lot to get…

  • Spring migrants blown in at Dungeness

    The past few days have been wild and windy here at Dungeness, very different from last weeks weather! However it looks like the wind is helping migrants on their journey here with swallows, house martins and sand martins all seen over Burrowes Pit yesterday.

    The ring-necked duck might be here to stay as he has developed a fondness for a female tufted duck on Cooks pool, so we shall see what the future brings for this…

  • American ducks come up trumps for Dungeness!

    Today on the reserve, our presence has been graced by another American vagrant - a male hooded merganser! He has spent his day over by the Denge Marsh area of the reserve and can be viewed from the ramp and on the footpath by Hookers pit. A really stunning bird! 

    Our ring-necked duck is also still about on the reserve and has been flying from pool to pool by the Boulderwall farm area. 

    Perhaps not so lucky for them, being…

  • Dungeness update 03/03/17

    This weeks blog post has been written by one of our volunteers, Andrew Norman:

    They say that the month of March ‘comes in like a lion, goes out like a lamb’. Well, it certainly felt like the ‘lion’ side of it weather-wise at the RSPB Dungeness nature reserve on March 1st, with grey skies and frequent (albeit relatively short) downpours. 

    Still, that’s not to say that there isn’t much happening…

  • Dungeness update 25/02/2017

    We survived storm Doris and thank you to the brave visitors who came to the reserve on Thursday!

    There have been a variety of birds around on the reserve this week. Our beautiful smew have been seen mostly from Christmas Dell hide but have been moving about.

    Male smew in flight, female (redhead) smew on the water - by Graham Parry


    We had 200 shoveler on Burrowes pit and other ducks seen include: the ring-necked…

  • Dungeness update 17/02/2017

    What a difference a week makes! Last week we had bitter cold and dull days, this week has been full of sunshine and much milder weather! Spring seems tantalisingly close with snowdrops shooting out of the ground, birds starting to look for potential nesting spots, wildlife pairing up for the breeding season and to my delight I saw my first bumblebee of the year today too!

    Image: Snowdrops by Andy Hay (rspb-images.com…

  • Dungeness update 10/02/2017

    A Dungeness record was broken this week when we had 1818 cormorants counted roosting on Burrowes pit one evening! What a spectacular sight, the islands were turned black by the sheer number of cormorants roosting on them! A large and conspicuous waterbird, the cormorant has an almost primitive appearance with its long neck making it appear almost reptilian. It is often seen standing with its wings held out to dry. Regarded…

  • Dungeness update 28/01/2017

    It was a grey start to this morning but now it is bright with a blue sky here at Dungeness! We've had some clear weather but it's been very cold this week. 

    Sightings have been quite similar to last week so this might be a fairly short post from me this week!

    A Dartford warbler and redwings have been seen around the trail over the week. Dartford warblers prefer open and heathland habitat and rely on gorse to…

  • Dungeness update 20/01/2017

    This week has been bitterly cold but with glorious sunshine - my favourite type of winter weather!

    With the cold spell we have seen a rise in our duck numbers. Lots of wigeon, teal and shoveler have been seen out on the pits. The ring-necked duck can still be seen on Cooks lake by Boulderwall. 

    A male smew was sighted today! It was seen first from Dennis' hide and again from Makepeace later on in the day, hopefully it…

  • Take a closer look – binocular and telescope events January to April 2017

    Thinking of buying binoculars or a telescope? 

    Whether you know a bit or don't know where to start, come to the RSPB Dungeness Visitor Centre and get some hands on advice from our friendly, knowledgeable team and have the chance to try the products out.

    We stock the RSPB range of binoculars and telescopes, including the top of the range RSPB HDXs and HDs as well as a selected range of other brands such as Viking, Swarovski…

  • Happy New Year 2017

    We had a busy start to the new year with lots of keen bird watchers visiting the reserve to get their New Year's lists started! We've had a couple of good bird sightings here too which I'm sure boosted the list for the start of the year. 

    Lots of Bewick's swans have been on the reserve this week with over 30 counted at the ARC yesterday. Interestingly, we had a report of a pair of Bewick’s Swans with white…

  • Dungeness Christmas update 2016

    Seasons greetings! This is the last update before Christmas, for recent bird sightings check the BirdTrack column on the website. Remember that the reserve will be closed Christmas Day and Boxing Day, but our opening hours are still the same otherwise.

    We have released our grazing sheep out onto the reserve. Grazing the shingle peninsula is a historical method, traditional of how the area used to be managed prior to…

  • Christmas sale 2016

    The Christmas sale has started! Drop into the RSPB Dungeness shop and pick up a bargain.

    The visitor centre is open from 10am to 4pm

  • Dungeness update 2nd December 2016

    Frosty, crisp, windless days have graced us this week at Dungeness. I had a chance to enjoy a morning in the winter sun wandering the nature trail on Wednesday. I am amazed at how many robins and wrens I came across and I never tire watching their behaviour. I was also lucky enough to observe a little egret catching fish in the reedbed outside Scott hide and I also had my first proper sighting of bearded…