Blood, Sweat and Shears as countryside
volunteers get busy
A group of 15 French conservation
volunteers will join forces with volunteers from the Kent Stour
Countryside Project (KSCP) this weekend for two days of toil in the Kent
countryside.
The French volunteers are all members of Les Blongios,
‘The Little Bitterns’, a volunteer conservation group from the north
Calais region. As part of INTERREG - an EU-funded programme to help forge
partnerships across Europe – Les Blongios and Kent Stour Countryside
Project arrange a small number of exchange trips each year to tackle
countryside projects in England and France. , Holland and Belgium. please
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"It’s a pleasure to welcome Les Blongios to Stodmarsh," said
Jason Mitchell, Countryside Officer, KSCP. "These working weekends
are always great fun – everyone involved gets a real buzz from working
together and sharing their experiences of the countryside. Somehow its
seems very appropriate that it’s ‘The Little Bitterns’ that are
helping to restore habitat that could see the rare bittern return to Kent
as a breeding bird. A big thank you to all our countryside
volunteers!"
"Stodmarsh is renowned for its
reedbeds and shallow lagoons which are home to an abundance of birds such
as bearded tits, reed and sedge warblers and reed buntings ," said
David Feast, Site Manager, English Nature – Kent. "However, there
is a constant need to keep the reedbeds clear as these habitats can soon
begin to choke up as dead reed builds up and scrub and trees start to move
in. With so many volunteers prepared to lend a hand this weekend we expect
to make great progress in bringing many of the reed beds back to tip-top
condition."
Visitors are always welcome to Stodmarsh National Nature
Reserve which is one of English Nature’s ‘Spotlight’ reserves. Along
with 34 other NNRs in England, Stodmarsh offers outstanding opportunities
for visitors to enjoy the area’s special landscape and wildlife. There
are car-parks at Stodmarsh village and Grove Ferry from which there is
access to and around the Reserve for wheelchair users, families with
push-chairs and visitors with mobility problems.
