Welcome to Wild Wadhurst, a website for people interested in the wildlife and wildflowers of Wadhurst, East Sussex. We are very lucky to live in a town that is surrounded by countryside that is abundant with all sorts of birds, insects, mammals, flowers and fungi. The aim of this site is to give you information on what’s around and where to see it, as well as perhaps improve your knowledge of the wild things around us and give ideas on what you could do to help.
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Why not join in our Community Nature Reserve aim – read about it here.
Here are some of the most recent photos from our Facebook page.
Terry Hallahan and his crew of volunteers from Sussex Barn Owl Study Group have been round to inspect all the recently installed barn owl boxes.
Some of the boxes have been used by stock doves to breed, this is quite common, (as well as kestrels or other types of owls), however… The great news is that there has been lots of barn owl activity. Some sad news with a dead bird and some abandoned eggs, but even that indicates boxes have been adopted and breeding has happened, albeit unsuccessfully sometimes. No doubt the long cold wet spring played its part in reducing prey and increasing mortality.
In summary:
2 adult barn owls roosting at Whiligh, the female of which was ringed last year
1 adult female near Whiligh, with a “brood patch” indicating she has bred Evidence, though no sighting, of a barn owl at Swatland
5 barn owl chicks (30-50 days old) at Whitegates Lane, very healthy, 2 male / 2 female / 1 undetermined
5 abandoned eggs at Claphatch (although sad, it’s encouraging that the box was adopted and breeding took place)
Sadly, 1 dead barn owl at Pell Green
Terry’s team have been using coloured leg rings this year, which are a lot easier to see than the plain metal rings of previous years. So if we see a coloured ring on an owl we can be pretty confident it’s one of ours.
So please keep your rough meadowland rough (for the voles), then hopefully we’ll have even more breeding pairs of barn owls next year.
Are you tired of looking up at the night sky only to be disappointed by the skyglow of light pollution and the orange haze from Tunbridge Wells? Well, fear not, my fellow stargazers, for there is hope on the horizon – or rather, in the night sky! A group of ambitious individuals have embarked on a mission to make our beloved Wadhurst a Dark Sky Community, and we need your help!
More good news for Wadhurst! The yearly swift survey has been carried out by the expert who has been looking after the Wadhurst church swifts for the past 37 years.
During Spring volunteers collected 40 large bags of litter during the Great British Spring Clean in March. This was closely followed in May by volunteers picking up litter following the community celebration of the King’s coronation. Thanks to everyone who participated!
volunteers out litter picking during Great British Spring Clean in March
Wild Wadhurst 