KRAG will be setting up a stall at this year's Riverside Countryside Experience. Jo Richards will be on hand to chat with folks who would like to come along and perhaps share some recent records. There will also be plenty of other stalls and activities to keep everyone entertained. I only hope the weather is better than last year!
The event will be held on Sunday 12th July from 11 am to 5 pm.
For those of you with a satnav, the park address is:
Riverside Country Park, Lower Rainham Road, Gillingham, Kent, KE7 2XH
More detailed directions on how to find the country park are also available here.
Here is some additional information on the country park that was obtained from Medway Council's website (with a few of my photos to illustrate):
Riverside Country Park covers 100 hectares alongside the Medway Estuary, including Motney Hill and Berengrave Local Nature Reserve. There are various habitats within the park, including mudflats and salt marsh, ponds and reed-beds, grassland and scrub, which provide a haven for wildlife.
The estuary has special protection as part of the Medway Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and is internationally important for wintering birds that thrive on the invertebrate-rich mudflats. The salt marshes have a specialised ecology and act as high tide roost sites.
Riverside has several ponds at Sharps Green and Berengrave. These are cleared of vegetation to maintain open water.
The reedbeds at Motney Hill are one of only 92 such sites which exceed two hectares in the UK. Management involves cutting a small area each year, which promotes dense growth and halts the natural progression of the reeds.
Grassland at Eastcourt Meadows and Rainham Dock East is mown in early autumn to encourage wildflowers and insects. Although the scrub is controlled, it forms an important part of this habitat, providing cover for small animals, nesting sites for birds and complete ecosystems for insects.
Of course, Riverside Country Park is also of great interest to KRAG for one or two other reasons...
I'm sure that you won't be surprised to learn that Riverside Country Park has been designated by KRAG as a Key Reptile Site for Kent. If you do see any lizards or snakes whilst visiting the park, please do remember to tell us about it!
