Alderney bids to be official bird observatory
ALDERNEY Wildlife Trust has begun a two-year pilot scheme which could see it become the Channel Islands' first nationally accredited bird observatory.
The observatories conduct long-term monitoring of bird populations and migrations and the data they provide underpins conservation strategies of bodies such as Natural England and its various counterparts.
Overseen by the Bird Observatories Council and the British Trust for Ornithology, there are 19 bird observatories around the coast of Britain.
The trust, in partnership with resident ornithologists and with help from the BTO, is now developing the pilot project to establish whether it is viable to establish an observatory on Alderney, which would make it the most southerly of the network.
The trust says that the observatory will aim not only to grow understanding of Alderney's birds, but those of the Channel Islands in general.
If proved viable, the observatory will be at Essex Farm. Areas of vegetation will be cleared at Mannez and Longis ponds so that fine string nets can be set up for ringing.
