This Is Jersey

Jersey through the year

January
January often proves quite treacherous for wildlife as natural food sources become difficult to find. Even so, during any mild spell certain shrubs can be lured into early leaf and a few garden birds bravely react with an odd burst of pre-season song.

The most prominent of all early songsters is the Mistle thrush, or ‘storm cock’, a bird with a strong desire to compete against a winter gale by loudly singing from the top of the highest tree it can find.

Another species that is actively visible in January is the Jay, the most colourful member of the crow family.

Wherever streams meander through Jersey meadows, the Common alder dominates; it is, after all, a tree that’s rooted in damp places. In January, the dark alder cones and the unopened purplish catkins of the previous year often attract small flocks of Siskins, small canary-yellow members of the finch family.

Along many of the Island’s hedge-banks, the first flowering plant to brighten a January day is the Snowdrop which is likely to extend its dainty white carpets right through to March.

Other early harbingers of spring are the hanging clusters of male catkins, or lamb’s tail’s, which are just beginning to appear on mature Hazel trees.

Around ponds and in many damp areas Reedmace (more commonly known as Bulrush) are now very conspicuous by their velvety-brown, sausage-shaped seed-heads.

February
A less familiar bird that is often locally recorded during February is the Brambling, a dashing, colourful bird that looks very much like its close cousin the Chaffinch.

Another welcome garden visitor, and a lover of peanuts, is the Long-tailed tit, a tiny active and gregarious bird with a tail twice the length of its body.

Another vocally active species throughout the month is the Great-spotted woodpecker which is particularly at home in woodland where their resounding quick-fire drumming is now at its height.

On most damp nights, the laboriously slow but determined movement of Toads now begins in earnest as the amphibians begin to return to their nursery ponds prior to breeding.

When there is a dash of winter sunshine the first of the season’s Bumblebees will be attracted to the sallow catkins that now begin to ripen with pollen and nectar.

Something else that is attracted to any ray of February sunshine is the Winter gnat, a small harmless insect that looks like a smaller version of a daddy longlegs.

A favourite plant making an early appearance along banks and woodland edges is the Sweet violet which is often recognised as one of the first true flowers of spring.

March
Known for its strong and blustery winds, March has one redeeming feature - March 21 is the official start of spring.

In mature woodlands and gardens, many familiar birds such as Robins and Blackbirds are now making their presence known far more vocally. Also often heard repeating its name over and over again is the Chiffchaff, a once migratory species that now finds Jersey’s winter climate much to its liking.

Towards the end of March, we welcome the first of the summer migrants with the earliest of these being the Wheatear and the Sand martin.

One particular species of sea duck that will still be seen offshore during March is the Red-breasted merganser.

The male of this particularly handsome species of saw-bill has a wonderfully ragged head tuft which makes it look like a rather rakish mallard.

Although not nearly as common as they once were, bright little patches of Primroses now start to appear along sloping banks and woodland edges, and other positive botanical signs of the new season can be seen with the flowering of the Lesser celandine and the Wood anemone.

And according to an old saying, the first indication that spring really has arrived is when you can cover five Daisies with your foot.

On fine days the first of the season’s Speckled wood, Peacock and Brimstone butterflies might decide to have a bit of a flutter.

April
THERE are many good things to say about April, not least the understanding that ‘spring and early summer’ begins on 1 April, a comforting situation that’s supposed to last until 17 June.

Romantically, it’s the month when the first cuckoo is supposedly heard under a brilliant blue sky dotted with white puffy clouds – a typical April day as a poet might say! Records show that Jersey generally welcomes its first cuckoo around the third week of the month although, sadly, the species is nowhere near as common as it once was.

Yet, one thing that certainly can be guaranteed is the completely new colour schemes carefully chosen by our coast and countryside.

Most noticeable along the sea cliffs are the fresh mint-green shoots of the bracken which are now quickly replacing the russet browns of last year’s expired growth.

Contrasting as they do with the early white blossoming of the hardy blackthorn will ensure a most pleasurable coastal walk on any fine April day.

Hedge-banks and woodland edges too are beginning to show the colourful spirit of a burgeoning new season.

This they do in true patriotic style with the Red campion, the white flower-heads of wild garlic, and the sky blue clusters of alkanet – botanical flag-waving at its very proudest! Towards the end of the month, Jersey’s three breeding species of gull start to re-establish their fiercely guarded nesting territories.

The most familiar is the herring gull and although many seek out a familiar nest site along the coastline, others have become infamously unpopular for nesting on town rooftops.

The two other species are the mediumsized lesser black-back gull and the largest member of our gull species, the great black backed gull.

While the former can be recognised by its brightly coloured yellow legs and slate-grey mantle, the latter is easily identified by its sheer size, its coal-black back and its fleshy coloured ‘tights’.

May
TO many of us, May is a month to die for, a not too surprising statement under the seasonal circumstances.

It’s been a long grey winter and for those with an interest in wild things and wild places, it’s now a time for some serious looking and listening.

Birdwatchers, in particular, suddenly become birdlisteners as the avian choristers give vent to one of the finest free concerts the natural world has to offer.

For us to experience this to the full, equal measures of self discipline and a reliable alarm clock both prove absolutely essential.

To gain every advantage over their rivals at first light, male songbirds now need to express their availability to any female of the species – it is, as any Blackbird might say, a competitive jungle out there! Because of this, almost every garden and woodland bird with a strong voice will be proclaiming its masculine virility at the break of each new dawn.

This means that Robins, Blackbirds, Wrens, Song thrushes, Chaffinches and Blackcaps waste no time at all in leaping from the starting gun at around 4.30 am.

This cacophony of exuberant song lasts for no more than an hour after which birds focus their attention on finding an adequate breakfast.

Once the tummy has been replenished, sporadic singing will continue throughout the day and into the late evening.

All this important vocalisation, of course, is not the entire privilege of garden and woodland birds; there are other species that are equally dependent on the quality of their singing.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the dense reedbeds of St Ouen’s Pond where the strident calls of Cetti’s warblers and the musical chuckles of Reed warblers ring out loud and clear.

While the Cetti is regarded as something of a local resident, the Reed warbler is here but for a few short summer months to breed.

On the botanical front, Broom is now in full flower and adding a wonderful dash of vivid yellow to many of our coastal headlands.

A close relative of Gorse, its strongly coloured flowerheads remain remarkably scentless although the pollen appears to attract many kinds of insect.

The flowers also have a cleverly surprising defensive ‘trigger’ mechanism whereby an inquisitive visitor may receive a quick but harmless spray.

Although we should abide by the old adage ‘Change not a clout till May is out,’ there is now an undeniably confident optimism that warmer days are not too far away.

June
WHAT with the twin blessings of the longest day at the midsummer solstice (around 21 June) and Midsummer’s Day on 24 June, it’s hardly surprising that the month always proves so important in the yearly calendar.

Mottos that go back centuries are still relevant even today, a personal favourite being ‘Mist in May and heat in June brings all things well into tune.’ The hesitant green tints of our countryside we all enjoyed during May are now exploding into a veritable kaleidoscope of colours and perfumes.

On quiet dewy evenings the fragrance of Honeysuckle can be detected metres away and when the flowers darken after pollination the sweet nectar at the base of the flower tubes can actually be tasted.

Many flowering plants seem to favour all shades of pink, red and purple throughout June, the most noticeable being the hedgerow Dog rose, the damploving Purple loosestrife and the tough little Wild thyme.

Hedgehogs often visit gardens during late evening and provided that some cat food and a bowl of water are made available, their visits can be quite regular.

They certainly come high on any gardener’s wish-list of useful animals due to their impressive consumption of slugs, snails and other harmful garden pests.

For the birdwatcher, the month still has plenty to offer, although pure birdsong is now beginning to lose its urgency.

There is certainly no relaxation as far as parenting is concerned with myriad tiny appetites still needing to be satisfied on a frighteningly regular basis.

One species that is now in its prime, and well worth looking for, shows a distinct loyalty to the open grasslands of St Ouen’s Bay.

This is the skylark, a bird whose drab-brown plumage belies the most evocative of all bird song.

Their numbers have dropped dramatically over the years, although help is at hand along parts of Jersey’s west coast where the birds’ ground-nesting habitat has been given fenced-in protection.

To see and to hear a skylark in full flow on a bright June day is, like the month itself, something to truly treasure!

July
July is the month named in honour of Julius Caesar but because meadows would be expected to be at their full-bloomed prettiest it became more aptly referred to by the Anglo-Saxons as ‘mead month’.

What with the start of Dog Days on 3 July and keeping a watchful eye on the weather on St Swithin’s Day, 15 July, it can often prove a month of climatic extremes – hot and sultry, wet and unsettled.

Wildlife, though, cares not a jot for the daily weather forecast and, resilient as always, carries on regardless come rain or come heat wave. There is, however, the beginning of an air of relaxation during July as the stress of finding a compatible partner and defending that little patch of personal real estate is all but over and done with.

Nevertheless, there’s a multitude of tiny mouths still to be fed and, with newly fledged birds in particular, the need to adopt a steep and speedy learning curve to secure the skills of survival.

Mature gardens are probably now at their most productive as juvenile Blackbirds and Robins faithfully loiter with hungry intent alongside their food-seeking parents.

Although a few families of young Blue tits and Great tits remain loyal to the shrubbery, their temporary nest-box homes are now likely to be silent and abandoned, a far cry from the vocal hysteria of the previous month.

One bird that certainly can’t keep quiet about its presence is the Common swift, an elegantly designed species that shows great loyalty to St Helier. Each year towards the middle of April, these sooty-brown crescent winged birds return from Africa to refurbish their ideally suited cavity nest sites tucked high between the granite ramparts at Fort Regent.

Away from towns and gardens a natural colour-fest is also about to explode on Jersey’s coastal headlands with Les Landes and Portelet both looking quite spectacular. It is, after all, the season when the deep purple Heather shockingly combines with the vivid yellow flower-heads of the Western gorse, thus providing nature’s magnificent annual display of botanical colour co-ordination. Sharing the colour purple, but not quite the same habitat, is another tough little maritime plant known as Alderney sea lavender. Arriving in barges of crushed stone during the Occupation, this maritime-reliant immigrant from our northerly sister island is now seen in large swathes alongside the sea wall at Kempt Tower.

August
This time of high summer can be something of a fidgety month for those species of birds that regard Jersey purely as a temporary place of residence.

It’s very much a time of preparation for long-distance travellers such as Barn swallows, House martins, Sand martins and a wide selection of unobtrusive little warblers as a gentle but strengthening inner voice tells them that the time is nigh to start checking their return air tickets to the African continent.

Already, some of the Island’s summer migrants will have packed their bags and are well on their southern way; the Swifts and a handful of Cuckoos being prime examples. But for most of the others putting on all those extra ounces and gaining a proficiency certificate in feather fitness now becomes an essential priority.

Proving far more relaxed is Jersey’s prolific army of insects although most - fortunately for us perhaps – quietly prefer to keep very much to themselves. Many, however, trend to buck the trend and will make their presence known in a number of different ways.

High on the ‘musical’ list of insects are Bush crickets whose serenading rasping calls stridently state that courtship is alive and well in fields, hedgerows and open grasslands. Putting on a far more visual show is a rather special little character known as the Blue-winged grasshopper which, with its triangular-shaped azure-blue wings, has a particular liking for the sun soaked coastal areas of the Island’s south and west coasts.

Relying even more on bright colours are a host of butterflies that even the most casual of butterfly spotters cannot fail to ignore. Although considered by some to be in a somewhat lower league, a handful of species of day-flying moths nevertheless hold their own when it comes to the beauty stakes. High in this colourful order are the Jersey tiger, the Six-spot burnet, the Cinnabar and the frequently seen Humming-bird Hawk Moth.

Of course, it’s not only these aerial sunbathers that capitalise on the heat of a typical August day; Green lizards also share the same sun-seeking passion. A lover of the sandy expanses of St Ouen’s Bay, these emerald green and black speckled beauties are now at their most visual. Breeding and egg-laying will already have taken place but the newborn youngsters – anything between five and twenty per family – will not be taking their first steps into the sandy world until September.

Finally, one other little island speciality that’s likely to be advertising its sensual wares on a sultry August night is the Glow-worm. It’s the female of the species that now glows with erotic pride along grassy hedge-banks as, with her very own personal light-show, she attempts to secure the favours of the flying males.

At first glance, a calming month perhaps, but for wildlife, not as quiet as we might think!

September
There’s a wonderful old saying ‘September dries up wells and breaks down bridges’, which, I suppose, is one way of telling us that the month can be a little unpredictable. One thing that never changes, however, is the rich bounty of the countryside seen at this time of year in all its fruit and nutty splendour.

As far as wildlife is concerned, the month is certainly a generous provider; it has to be because, for all manner of birds and beasts, this calorie-rich harvest is likely to be their last opportunity of enjoying a fulsome banquet.

Nowhere is this more visible than in hedgerows where the springtime blossom of the Hawthorn has been generously recycled into the plump and scarlet berries of autumn. Capitalising on this high yield of berries are birds such as Blackbirds, Redwings and Fieldfares, the latter two species having flown in especially from the forests of Scandinavia. The ‘chack-chacking’ calls of these birds as they diligently work their hungry way through Jersey’s ‘berry-markets’ are a familiar sound in late September.

Although receiving minimal Brownie points from certain gardeners, Ivy also offers an incredibly important life-support for scores of creatures. Now flowering until November, this super-rich plant will attract a huge diversity of insects on any warm and sunny day – drone flies, wasps, bees, moths plus a colourful selection of butterflies such as Commas and Red admirals. Of course, where there’s an insect, there’s the opportunity of a tasty meal and one bird that uses ivy to the best of all advantages is the tiny Wren. In this respect, not only does ivy provide the bird with a well-stocked larder, it also offers untold qualities as residential accommodation.

Also now at their deliciously best are the seed-heads of thistles, ragwort and groundsel, highly unwanted plants as far as we are concerned yet, if you happen to be a Goldfinch, all highly prized providers of protein. Where such seedy plants occur in open fields and grasslands, ‘charms’ of these delightfully multi-coloured finches are now seen in profusion.

One of our most prized and popular wildlife treasures is the Red squirrel that, due in many ways to supplementary feeding, now finds itself in remarkably high numbers. Because they now have this assured provision of winter food, experienced mothers sometimes find the time and the inclination to have a second litter. Because of this extra opportunity for procreation, the slow-motion, courtship-chasing activities of red squirrels are now frequently seen in many of the woodland tree canopies.

September then, is not simply a month of fruitful generosity it’s also a time of natural change – albeit a surreptitious one!

October
A woodland walk during October offers an ideal opportunity to witness seasonal changes. Woodland in autumn might appear bereft of life, yet below its many surfaces, microscopic chain-gangs of earth worms and wire worms, beetles, slugs and woodlice, are playing a part in nature’s clean-up campaign.

Most visible of all, though, are the many glorious shapes and colours of fungi which find nourishment from rotting twigs and leaves. The most familiar in Jersey will be the ‘half-plate-shaped’ Bracket fungus and the scattered shiny clusters of the delightfully named Porcelain fungus.

A brief reminder of summer past is frequently offered by the familiar Red admiral, a handsome butterfly that will be seen either feeding on the last of the season’s flower-heads or sipping the sweet juices of windfall apples.

Sadly, none will survive the months of winter, but one species that does survive is the Comma, a ragged-winged butterfly that bides its time away in deep hibernation, usually within the cracks of tree bark.

Throughout October, certain fields in Jersey’s countryside provide generous avian hyper-markets for birds, including Greenfinches, Chaffinches, Goldfinches or any other migrating seed-eating species breaking its long journey back down to the grasslands of Africa.

November
Provided that the autumn has been generous with its edible handouts, the call of hibernation strongly beckons to the likes of hedgehogs, green and wall lizards, toads, grass snakes, slow worms and bats.

While most will prefer to undertake the long sleep in solitary confinement, bats prefer the close proximity of their brethren and will form tightly packed little clusters in a dark and dank hideaway.

The most significant signs of seasonal change will be seen along Jersey’s varied shoreline. Arriving in variable numbers since mid-August, it’s not until now that the sheer numbers and variety of wading birds fully confirm the importance of the Island’s maritime habitats.

With its hugely important Ramsar designation, it is along the entire bay of Grouville where most of these shorebirds will be spending their time between now and next March.

The richness of the maritime soup brought in with each upcoming tide can be realised with the species of birds annually associated with this area.

These range from the easily identified Curlew with its long down-curved bill to the diminutive yet hyper-active Dunlin.

Also included in this annual influx of wading birds are Oystercatchers, Godwits, Plovers, Turnstones and Sanderlings.

December
December can prove one of the best of times for wildlife-watching. True, all those familiar birds of the summertime have all but deserted us, they have been replaced by an even greater array of winter ones.

Apart from familiar garden birds such as Great tits, Blue tits, Robins, Blackbirds and Chaffinches, you can often see the Sparrow-hawk which has an appetite for almost any small bird it can catch.

It is also at this time of year when the highest count is generally made of one of the Island’s most loyal species of maritime bird – the Brent goose.

This small and very familiar species of sea goose – no bigger than a mallard duck – has been associated with Jersey for centuries and, by December, their local numbers can be in excess of 1,000 individual birds.

Any beach walk during December, particularly where the shoreline is strewn with rock-pools and gullies, is likely to include sightings of a Grey heron and its smaller, pristine white cousin, the Little egret.

Again, the east coast comes highly recommended for a spot of serious ‘heron-spotting’.