Ashford Birdwatchers Club is a small group of people with an interest in birdwatching in and around Kent. We hold indoor meetings through the winter and also arrange a variety of field meetings throughout the year. All indoor meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month at the W.I. Hall, 228, Faversham Road, Kennington, Ashford, TN24 9AN, Kent at 2.30 pm. New members are very welcome. We have a £28.00 annual subscription or £5.00 on the door
Our next indoor meeting is on 15th October and is a talk on Camouflage and Pretence by Melvin Smith.
Why is that creature that colour? How do they know what colour they are?
A thought provoking, and sometimes amusing, look at the way evolution has produced the creatures which we see around us today.
This will be at the WI Hall, Faversham road, Kennington, starting at 2.30 pm and finishing by 4.15 pm. Admission is £4 including refreshments.
Following our September meeting, which featured an excellent talk by Paul Holt on the Hebrides, we held our AGM followed by thanks and a presentation to our outgoing Chair, Jenny Jackson. Jenny has led the. Club for many years, planning interesting talks and visits and guiding it through COVID and the use of online talks and meetings. We were pleased to present Jenny with a print of Bullfinches by Stephen Message, a book token and a garden voucher.
2026/2027
2025-26
September 17th A Journey to the Hebrides, by Paul Hale
We stop off in Teesdale for Black Grouse on our way north to the Inner and Outer Hebrides including St Kilda, a dual World Heritage site for both its culture and nature. On our journey we see a range of species from Golden Eagle to Corncrake, from Otter to St Kilda wren, not to mention a range of breeding seabirds. We also look at the lifestyle of the St Kildans and somehow end up at a whisky festival on Islay.
A short AGM will be held this afternoon.
October 15th Camouflage and Pretence by Melvin Smith
Why is that creature that colour? How do they know what colour they are?
A thought provoking, and sometimes amusing, look at the way evolution has produced the creatures which we see around us today.
November 19th Birds of Southern Morocco-from High Atlas snow to Sahara sands by John Buckingham
John is a very popular speaker, and we welcome him back for another presentation on an area I guess not many of us know about.
No meeting in December
January 21st 2026 The reintroduction of Choughs to Kent.
Suzanne Kynaston from Wildwood Trust's Education Dept will give a talk and update.
February 18th Birding in Kent, a video diary, by Nick Smith.
A new speaker for us with an interesting presentation.
March 18th The Wild Sea is my Home by Andre Farrar
Andre is well known to us; he is updating us on the state of the seabirds around our coast.
April 15th To be arranged, members suggestions welcomed.
We also plan to have outdoor field meetings, details will be sent about 2 weeks prior to the walk, with a reminder 1 week beforehand.
ashfordbwc.bsky.social
Our talk this month is by Gill Hollamby and will cover a short history of the Ashford Birdwatchers Club followed by a quick look at the History of Migration. Looking at when, why and how migration is monitored.
The afternoon starts at 2.30 and finishes by 4.15. Please bring a cup for refreshments.
Our next indoor meeting is on March 19th. It is a talk on Worth Marshes, the recreation wetlands by Vikki Paeple. Vikki is site manager for Worth Marshes and she will explain the actions the RSPB are taking for habitat creation, restoration of the wetlands working to create a mosaic of habitats for wildlife,
The afternoon starts at 2.30 and finishes by 4.15. Please remember to bring a mug for refreshments.
Our speaker next Wednesday February 19th will be Andre Farrar who will be talking about "The Wonders of Migration". Andre used to work for the RSPB in many roles including Species Protection Warden, Conservation Officer and Public Affairs Manager. He has visited us before and his talks are always interesting and topical. Andre is also Chair of Kent Ornithological Society.
The meeting will be at the WI Hall, Faversham Road, Kennington starting