Where to see Kingfishers in Kent

[nchesh]

Hi

I have recently started to take a lot more interest in Birds and have started to make my garden more bird friendly and also have started to visit more places to see other birds. Both myself and my partner are keen on seeing a Kingfisher but have failed to do so. Can anyone recommend the best places in Kent to see a Kingfisher.

Your help would be appreciated.

Kind Regards
Neil

[Ukwildlifeo]

Stodmarsh. The hide nearest the car park there. Apparently it was appearing atleast once a day, back in the summer, but I haven't been there in months and I never saw it lol

[nchesh]

Hi

Thanks for that I will try and get down there and see if I have better luck.

Regards
Neil

[kent marshman]

hiya the river stour good back of westbere lake i get them on farm pond at minster p
placed a stick in the bank over hanging the water for them to perch on seems to work


regards george

[Astra]

Try walking along the Royal Military Canal in Hythe.
We've seen several Kingfishers along there.

[Bullseye]

The Rother, and just over the border in East Sussex, the Brede and Tillingham,also Powdermill Res, (the surrounding woods are my favourite place for a walk).You usually hear a kingfisher first,when you do just get ready for the "flash" wizzing downriver past you.

[pressld2]

In north Kent, you can see them on the River Cray. Footscray meadows is a good place and I've also seen one on a little tributary of the Cray (called the River Shuttle) where it runs alongside the A2 at Bexley. Seemed a bit incongruous at the time - six lanes of thundering juggernauts to my right, and to my left a gently meandering stream with a kingfisher on it. Not much chance of hearing it first!

Dave P.

[outdoorguy]

i live in east peckhan near tonbridge.. anywhere along the river medway or river bourne are pretty good.. see them quite often.. a lot of the time they are just flying by peeping there loud call... but alays worth seeing even if its a brief glimpse... if u need more info message me.. james

[Bwrack]

Originally Posted by nchesh

Hi

I have recently started to take a lot more interest in Birds and have started to make my garden more bird friendly and also have started to visit more places to see other birds. Both myself and my partner are keen on seeing a Kingfisher but have failed to do so. Can anyone recommend the best places in Kent to see a Kingfisher.

Your help would be appreciated.

Kind Regards
Neil

seen a few at Kent wildlife Sevenoaks

[nchesh]

Hi all

Overwhelmed by the response, seems that they are a lot less rare than I thought.

One further point when would be the best time to look for them.

Regards
Neil

[Chas]

They are much more common than you might think. Try to pick a time to look when it is very quiet, I would say that this is imperative!. They are incredibly clever at spotting you before you spot them. They will fly away from the water and around you to avoid flying past. Once you have seen one you will get used to the call that they usually make as they fly by. You will often hear the call before you see it once you know what to listen for. They fly very fast and appear like a flash of the most amazing colour! Obviously it is not uncommon to spot one perched but much, much more likely to see them in flight. Hope that helps a bit as well.

[JeffH]

Originally Posted by nchesh

Hi all
Overwhelmed by the response, seems that they are a lot less rare than I thought.
One further point when would be the best time to look for them.
Regards
Neil

Hi Neil

The latest estimate of Kingfisher numbers is between 4,800 and 8,000 breeding pairs in the whole of the UK, though the latest statistics published by the Rare Breeding Birds Panel (RBBP) - based on reports by County Recorders - is that in 2004 there were only about 31 breeding pairs in Kent that year, though this is almost certainly an underestimate.

As for the best time to see them, Kingfishers are at their most active in the early morning as after a night of roosting they need to feed at the earliest opportunity, so I'd recommend that you're out and about by first light.

Good luck

Jeff

[Lincs Yellowbelly]

I see them wherever i go in the country, you've just got to know what to look for and the places to look. Any River, Canal or Lake with good numbers of small fish and perching places