Birds on the Edge, a collaborative project between the National Trust for Jersey, the Environment Department and Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, has received £2,000 from the Channel Islands Co-op to buy a selection of local tree species. Small trees, including hawthorn, blackthorn and hazel will be planted at La Coupe and Fliquet in St Martin, above Queen’s Valley and at Crabbé in St Mary.
This year more than 80 fields have been planted with a special bird seed mix at 17 locations, covering a total area of 270 vergées, across the Island. The seed includes sunflowers, mustard, millet and barley to provide food for migratory birds, such as reed buntings and linnets, and local species, including the green finch and skylark, as well as mammals and reptiles over the winter. The hedges will be planted alongside some of those fields.
‘Planting these hedges will enhance the value of the fields and their biodiversity,’ project manager Cris Sellarés said. ‘They will create habitats and places for birds who want to nest there. They will also provide protection from predators, such as sparrow-hawks. As the project grows, the hedges will also benefit other species, such as hedgehogs and squirrels, by creating a network of wildlife routes, or corridors, across the Island.’
The hedge planting is one of 15 environmental schemes supported in 2017 by the Co-op. ‘As a community retailer we’re committed to helping improve the local environment and Birds on the Edge particularly resonated with our core environmental values,’ community officer Tanya Dorrity said. ‘To restore one mile of hedgerows for endangered species will be of benefit not only to a variety of wildlife, but to Islanders themselves for many years to come.’
Jersey’s countryside is still recovering from the effects of Dutch Elm disease in the 1970s when about 80 per cent of all hedgerow trees were lost, and the Great Storm of 30 years ago, which destroyed 20,000 trees.
