Kent Wildlife Conference 2026

THE KENT WILDLIFE CONFERENCE

SATURDAY 24th October 2026

Darwin Conference Suite, Darwin College, University of Kent

The Kent Wildlife Conference is an opportunity for all those interested in the county’s natural history and its conservation – whether amateur or professional, from beginners to experts – to meet up, chat, and catch up with some of the latest work, records and findings.

This year, the conference is broadly themed around biological recording and the use and presentation of biological records, with speakers covering subjects from seaweeds to turtles to nightingales and beyond.

We are very pleased this year to be able to welcome an exceptional line-up of speakers, including Graeme Lyons, author of the recent-published Pan-Species Listing – how to become a super-naturalist. Graeme is a hugely accomplished field naturalist, who has set himself a project of recording 6,000 species in 2026, and will be bringing copies of his book for sale at a special discounted price.

As always, you are welcome to bring displays or other information about work relevant to Kent’s natural history, and we especially welcome posters detailing recent research work. But please let us know in advance, using the booking form.

The Conference will be held in the Darwin Conference Suite, in Darwin College at University of Kent’s Canterbury Campus, Canterbury, CT2 7NY. Free, ample parking is available all day in the nearby main visitor car park.

BOOK NOW! Tickets just £22 per person, or £15 for students. Includes refreshments and buffet lunch. Just click on the 'Register' button below, or click HERE to download a booking form.

NB If paying online, please note that you DO NOT need a Paypal account. When directed to Paypal, select 'checkout as guest', and then untick the button that invites you to submit a password and create an account.

PROGRAMME

10.00   Welcome.

10.10   Using Bioblitz data to monitor biodiversity on the University of Kent campus. Jessica Neil-Boss, University of Kent.

10.35   Great Crested Newts: what mark-recapture can tell us that traditional surveys can’t. John Rowland, Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology.

11.00   Turtle Tally UK: A Citizen Science Survey. Suzie Simspon, Turtle Tally.

11.25 – 11.55    Coffee and poster session

11.55   Kent’s Nightingales - mining the data, tracking the birds, and strategies for their recovery Murray Orchard, Kent Ornithological Society.

12.20   From records to resilience: the central role of local biological records in shaping the implementation plans for the North Kent Woods & Downs NNR. Dave Shenton, Kent Wildlife Trust.

12.45 – 14.15 Lunch and poster session

14.15   Project call: a chance for anyone present to publicise and ask for help with wildlife recording projects.

14.25   Online atlases: is this the way forward? Bob Foreman Sussex Biodiversity Record Centre.

14.50   Francis Rose's legendary Flora of Kent. Geoffrey Kitchener, Kent Botanical Recording Group.

15.15   Pan-species listing – how to become a super-naturalist. Graeme Lyons, freelance entomologist, ecologist & author.

15.55 Wrap-up and depart

Please note that the programme may be subject to change.

HOW TO FIND THE DARWIN CONFERENCE SUITE

From Whitstable, A2, Canterbury and the west enter the university from the A290 follow the road into Giles Lane and turn right into Darwin Road; from Herne Bay, Canterbury and the east enter the university from Hackington Road and follow Giles Lane and turn left into Darwin Road. Darwin College is situated on Darwin Road. For the Conference Suite, on entering Darwin College turn right past reception and through the doors.

You may park for free in the Gulbenkian Theatre carpark on Library Road during daytime, or use the Sports Centre Road area on the opposite side of Giles Lane nearby, which has a larger free parking area for visitors.

A plan of the campus and location of Darwin College can be viewed at

https://www.kent.ac.uk/maps/canterbury/canterbury-campus/building/darwin-college/darwin-conferen

There is a regular bus service to the University from central Canterbury.

The Darwin Conference Suite has step-free, ground floor access with large doors and parking and a bus stop nearby. It is not equipped with a hearing loop, but facilities can be made available for people with hearing difficulties.

BOOK NOW! Tickets just £22 per person, or £15 for students. Includes refreshments and buffet lunch. Just click on the 'Register' button below, or click HERE to download a booking form.

NB If paying online, please note that you DO NOT need a Paypal account. When directed to Paypal, select 'checkout as guest', and then untick the button that invites you to submit a password and create an account.