About 6 years ago I started 'working' as a volunteer for the Jersey butterfly Monitoring Scheme - they broke me in gently with a nice little farm site that belongs to the Jersey National Trust then I took on 2 sites on the NW of the Island, one very small and the other being the 2nd largest on the Island that can take a while to do depending on distraction encountered en route, these can vary from lost visitors to slow worms crossing a path.
So this year I have been luck enough to add a 4th site and it is lovely. The previous walker was very sad to give it up but he was finding it a little difficult and I think given he is 88 it is allowed.
So without further ado let me introduce you to the South West corner of the Island
Most of the route is on good paths
to the right there is quite often a Little Egret or two to distract and it also offers a place to spot basking Green Lizards - if you have a eye for them
This little lady will be a star of the screen soon as she was being filmed by a documentary team when we walked it last week
As the path turns to the left there is a German WW2 bunker looking out over the sea - so far spotted various Pipits and wrens enjoying foraging around it and you open out onto this view
the track starts to gently slope down
There is an old small quarry on the left that could prove interesting
and then I remember what I am doing here
It's worth using ears as well as eyes because the sound of something in the undergrowth warrants a closer look. Not the best picture but a male Green Lizard showing a fabulous throat
Now down some steps into a little bay, trying not to step on butterflies and lizards on the way
This is a good place to spot Turnstones and Oystercatchers
a good warm wall - wonder what I will find along here over the summer
Now we turn up to the left and start to climb - there is a stream on the right and houses along with Scotch pine - eyeing up the cones for a project later in the year if the squirrels leave me any
and then we are back out into the open and a small bit of track
turn right through the style
and then to the only potential challenge of the site - up the side of the field. Fine on a cool day after rain but on a hot dry day will be difficult footing - it's pretty soft sand and having spotted a well dug in tractor last week it can get deep! but never mind there will be plenty of things to distract me
It is with a bit of relief that we come out onto the heath at the top
There is a bit of archaeology to distract
now on the homeward stretch
stunning views from the top
and it's downhill all the way
Rosy dog quite likes it - plenty of sniffs and as she is going quite deaf it is a fairly safe area for her to be off lead - she doesn't loose sight of me but she wishes there were more muddy puddles
Not bad for a 1/2 to 3/4 hour walk
Caroline in Jersey
Edited for spelling!
Cin J
Looks like a lovely walk, Caroline. They must think you've been doing a good job to give you another patch. It's so picturesque that I'd probably forget what I was supposed to be looking for.
Amazing colours on the Green Lizard. What is the orange butterfly - some kind of Fritillary?
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Tony
My Flickr Photostream
The orange job is a Small copper which is tiny. I hope it is that TJ and not that they are desperate ;)
Fritillary is on my wish list - up until the '90's we had a few Pearl Borders on the North Coast but they appear to have disappeared without trace. Fingers crossed that one day they may return
That looks a lovely area for butterflies, & you've got a Peacock & small Copper to start you off! Like you say the old quarry looks interesting. You should find lots of birds & bugs & beetles too, not to mention your lovely green lizards.
We loved working on our Atlas Of Butterflies over the last 5 years. Due to a lack of volunteers we ended up with 10 areas 7 x 5 km each. Impossible to find everything but we ranged from 44 to 58 species per area. Before we started I hadn't (knowingly) seen half of what we found.
Best wishes
Hazel in Southwest France
Ah yes, Small Copper, I should have recognised it as I photographed them last summer. I get Silver Washed Fritillary on a Wildlife Trust site that I visit. Lovely butterflies but a bit early for them yet.
fantastic place
I'd never get to the end of it, would be on my hands and knees lol
good luck with your new site
Ray
a good laugh is better than a tonic
Caroline, What a place to do a butterfly transect. Were you aware that Butterfly Conservation have produced an app for smartphones (if you have one) that makes it a lot easier to record numbers and submit them.
Called Irecord the details are at butterfly-conservation.org/.../butterfly-recording-gets-smart.html
The Cotswold Water park sightings website
My Flicker page
Thanks for that Bob, once they make an iPhone/android that can survive being in my pocket it will be a useful app to have until then it will have to be paper and pencil
Lovely photo's Caroline, had a peacock butterfly the other week, while I was in the garden.
J
Germain said: Thanks for that Bob, once they make an iPhone/android that can survive being in my pocket it will be a useful app to have until then it will have to be paper and pencil Caroline in Jersey
Do you have set periods to go out?
Hazel, we officially go from April 1st to 29 September, any day of the week and the transects are walked between 10am and 5pm. The biggest influence is weather so need a min temp of 13 and 60% sunshine, if it's cloudier the temp needs to be higher so lowest is 17+ if only 40% sunshine - wind is the biggest issue - so unless it is a really sheltered site we don't walk above a 5. It does mean that some species might be under recorded - Purple Hairstreaks being one as they are canopy specialists and they don't tend to come down into recording range until late in the afternoon/evening!
I have to say I am very envious of your species count and why is it that there is always nettles, gorse or thistles when you want to get closer? or in my case an un-spotted rabbit hole or cliff edge when trying to work out if it is a female common blue or an argus!