A study of how seabirds and other wildlife use Channel Island waters is taking place for the first time this year.
Proposed by French researchers, the project involves a partnership between the French government and Channel Island organisations with the data produced being of great benefit to the communities and conservation organisations of all islands.
In a statement released by Cris Sellares, of Birds on the Edge, it says the initial aim was to monitor the Balearic shearwater, Europe’s rarest and most threatened seabird, which has only 3,000 breeding pairs. The birds spend many months a year in Channel Island waters despite breeding in the Mediterranean Sea.
However, whilst acknowledging the importance of Channel Island waters for the shearwater, local researchers considered this a unique opportunity to gather scientific data on all the species that use our seas, from seabirds to seals, dolphins, whales and fish.
The partnership combines the expertise of the Office Français de la Biodiversité (France’s Biodiversity Office), La Société Guernesiaise, Birds on the Edge, La Société Jersiaise, the British Trust for Ornithology, Le Mourier Marine Ltd., the States of Guernsey and the Government of Jersey.
A team of specialised surveyors is collecting data on all birds, mammals and fish from a dedicated boat, between May and October. The surveyors, all seasoned birdwatchers from Guernsey and Jersey, were trained on the research techniques by staff from the UK’s Joint Nature Conservation Committee, who run similar research programmes.
The boat-based surveys are being complimented by an aerial survey from a specialised plane, which will take high-definition photographs of birds on the waters and around both bailiwicks.
The project has been funded with contributions from the France’s Biodiversity Office, the States of Guernsey, the Government of Jersey, the Howard Davis Farm Trust, La Société Guernesiaise and La Société Jersiaise Nigel Quérée Environmental Award.
