Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve

Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve (NNR) in Kent is an internationally-important mixture of reed beds Please drive carefully - speed humps are in place.

The Nature Reserve car park (at CT3 4BB) is accessed from Stodmarsh village, via a single track road between the Red Lion public house and the church. Suggested voluntary donations for the car park are £3 all day, £1.50 per hour or £25 for annual parking. This is payable in advance or on site via the RingGo app and/or via credit card or by cash donation on the reserve.

Volunteers were out in force yesterday helping us with a number of tasks on the reserve. Together we managed to clear a ...
13/05/2026

Volunteers were out in force yesterday helping us with a number of tasks on the reserve. Together we managed to clear a large amount of Sycamore saplings by hand, which is a non-native species that can become highly invasive if left. We will be going back when appropriate to ring bark or fell the larger trees to create some standing dead wood away from the footpath and some fallen dead wood to help create habitat for a variety of wildlife.
Please note a Breeding Bird Survey was done before the work was undertaken to ensure we didn’t cause any disturbance to nests in the area.

We then had a team out painting some of our benches, cutting back any overgrowing vegetation on our footpaths to help maintain emergency and maintenance access. And we even found time to complete a few odd jobs around our community hide.

21/04/2026

*update: toilets are now unblocked*

Unfortunately, we have had to close the toilets once again due to someone placing hand towels down the toilet causing a major blockage.
Doing this results in unnecessary costs to the reserve to fix this issue, money which should be spent on improving the reserve for wildlife.
Please do not put hand towels down the toilets, this will result in toilet closures each time, and may result in prolonged closures if this keeps happening.
Until this current issue is resolved, there are public toilets available at Grove Ferry picnic site.

15/04/2026

We have just been made aware that there will be a temporary blockage of the road leading to the Stodmarsh carpark today from around 1pm to 2pm so no cars will be able to pass through during this time.
This is to allow a mixer lorry to provide materials for foundations to a local residents home, the home owner will be out from around 11am to prewarn anyone driving into the reserve.

07/04/2026

It's International Beaver Day!

So here is a short video of some of the things we manage to record as part of our surveys throughout the winter months. As the days get longer you stand a better chance of seeing these amazing mammals in daylight hours swimming through the ditch network, but as with most wildlife, it is mostly down to luck on the day!

Today we have some very special visitors to the reserve, pop down to meet the volunteers from Canterbury District Swifts...
22/03/2026

Today we have some very special visitors to the reserve, pop down to meet the volunteers from Canterbury District Swifts and learn more about Swifts and what you can do to help. They will be based at the Stodmarsh carpark from now until 3pm, come along and say hi!

03/03/2026

*UPDATE 9/3/25* - Cesspit has now been emptied so toilets are now available

Please be aware that the toilet facilities are currently closed at the Stodmarsh carpark due to one of the toilet flushes being stuck causing the cesspit to fill up. We hope to have this resolved asap depending on the availability of our contractor to empty this, the worse case scenario will mean they could be closed until Tuesday 10th.

The nearest public toilets are located at the Grove Ferry Picnic site which is roughly a 10min drive.

Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

We have been hearing our first Bittern booms this week, although they are not yet in full swing, a couple have just been...
25/02/2026

We have been hearing our first Bittern booms this week, although they are not yet in full swing, a couple have just been warming up, it looks like we will have an early start to the season this year and we will soon be out undertaking our surveys with our team of volunteers!

Let us know when and where on the reserve you hear our booming Bitterns, all Bittern records are valuable to us and helps us plan future improvements to support these wonderful birds.

20/02/2026

The wildlife here always surprises us during our surveys and we seem to pick up the odd behaviour or two during this time. This time we observed this ‘upside-down Badger’ coming out of what we believe is an outlying sett.

Evidence of Badger activity can be seen across our wetland reserve throughout the year, whether its footprints, latrines or foraging holes. They particularly like to dig up wasp nests during the summer months.

Badger setts are protected by law and should only be observed from a distance to prevent disturbance. This video is quite heavily cropped and recorded by trap cameras for this reason. Finding these setts is always important for us so our vegetation management doesn’t impact these amazing mammals.

Fun fact: Badgers are omnivores and around 80% of a badger’s diet is made up of earthworms where they can eat hundreds of them in a single night.

Road closure!*update 18/2/26* diversion signage has now been moved to the correct route*Please be aware the road within ...
17/02/2026

Road closure!

*update 18/2/26* diversion signage has now been moved to the correct route*

Please be aware the road within Stodmarsh village is closed in front of the church, so access to the village and the reserve is from the direction of Fordwich only.

If coming from the Grove Ferry direction, I would suggest against following the diversion signage, this will take you onto a road that is marked 'not suitable for motor vehicles' this sign is there for a reason.

Instead carry on along Hollybush Lane and take the next right onto Eldbridge Hill and then turn right at the top of the hill onto Stodmarsh Road, your car and tyres will thank you!

It looks like this closure will be currently in place until end of day Friday.

Spring is on its way!The first signs of spring are well under way here on the reserve with the Hazel producing Male catk...
11/02/2026

Spring is on its way!

The first signs of spring are well under way here on the reserve with the Hazel producing Male catkins which is the one of the classic first signs of spring.
Did you know each of these catkins consists of around 250 individual tiny flowers which can release its pollen at the slightest of touches to hopefully reach the female flower. Normally most of the pollen will never reach the female flower, but due to the sheer volume of pollen produced, this increases the chances. This fertilization process will ultimately trigger the development of a Hazelnut.

We have also been hearing an increase of bird song and activity across the reserve as well as seeing the bluebells starting to come through, we would just like the rain to take a break!

Address

Stodmarsh
Canterbury
CT34BB

Telephone

+443000603900

Website

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