The Coronavirus caused us to delay some of our important survey work in the field but we are back! We have recently re-started our work on the RSPB Dungeness reserve to do a second survey of invertebrate species using the brash piles installed on bare shingle. Shingle on parts of the Dungeness peninsula has suffered damage in previous years from vehicles and grazing etc. and this means that the important and nationally rare vegetation communities have been unable to re-establish.

We are working with the RSPB and Tony Witts (pictured) from the Kent & Medway Biological Records Centre to trial using brash from willow clearance piled at different heights on the bare shingle to see which is most effective at enabling plants to re-grow and which has the greatest diversity and abundance of invertebrate species. The surveys this year will add to information from ones we did last year and we are hoping to publish a peer reviewed paper from the results we generate. It is definitely good to be back out working after lock-down.