Sark’s cliff tops, roadsides and meadows are buzzing with butterflies, bees and other insects but, to give nature a helping hand, two fields have been set aside and planted with special seed mixtures to feed our wildlife. The meadow at the Coupée has a mixture of wildflowers aimed at attracting pollinators, and benches to attract people to come and watch them. Near the Island Hall is the Project Sunflower field,…
About Sark
There are plenty of butterflies around at the moment here on Sark but the most spectacular is the dark green fritillary. This striking orange and brown butterfly is impossible to confuse with the other brown butterflies on the wing at the moment being larger and more brightly coloured than both the gatekeeper and meadow brown butterflies. It has silvery spots on its underwings and is named after its dark green…
The seabird breeding season is in full swing here on Sark, which means that our puffins have returned from their life far out at sea to breed on L’Etac, an islet off Little Sark. The birds rear a single chick, called a puffling, in a burrow and by now one or other of the parents will be keeping the egg warm until it hatches in June. The best way to…
The seabird breeding season is in full swing here on Sark and this year seems to be particularly good for guillemots. These beautiful chocolate-brown and white birds belong to the auk family, along with puffins and razorbills that also breed here. Over the last three years they have established a new colony on rocks off the east coast as well as their main breeding site on Les Autelets on the…
The warm, sunny weather after the rain last week has created the perfect conditions for sowing the seeds for Project Sunflower, the conservation initiative started by Sue Daly and now in its third year. The two-acre field, which is near the Island Hall, has been loaned by farmer Gavin Nicolle who does the land preparation work with help from his son Martin. As well as sunflowers the seed mix contains…
A Brief Introduction to the Royal Sark Militia What is a militia, why did Sark have a militia and when did it start? A militia is a group of ordinary citizens obliged to enroll for military instruction, practice and in the case of an emergency active duty. The history of Sark’s militia begins in 1565 with its first Seigneur, Helier de Carteret. When Queen Elizabeth I of England granted him…
We have put together a number of self-guided walking routes which take in as much of the coast of Sark as possible. They have been broken down into manageable walks but have been designed in a specific order so that you can join a number of the routes together to form a larger walk. Leaflets of the walks are also available in the Visitor Centre for a small printing charge….
This walk starts from the bottom of Harbour Hill but before you start this walk, take a moment to visit the old harbour, Creux. The original entrance to the bay was blasted through the rock in 1588 and is still in the same position today. The main entrance that we now use, along with the protective harbour wall was not built until 1866. This harbour allowed easy access to Jersey…
From the Visitor Centre go straight ahead past St Peter’s Church (take a peep inside to see the seat tapestries of the various family seats, the coat of arms and the crossed keys for the prisoners), past the old Island Hall (where Sibyl Hathaway encouraged locals to stay prior to the German occupation during World War II), the Fire Station and Chief Pleas rooms (our government and court offices). Go…
From the Visitor Centre turn left on to the Mill Lane. At the start of Mill Lane lies Le Manoir, the home of our Seigneurs from 1565 until 1730. The main house bears the coat of arms, four diamonds, of our original Seigneur, Helier de Carteret. The cottages adjoining, leading up to the Cider Barn, are thought to have been the servants’ quarters and the Cider Barn would likely have…
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Mervyn Peake Blue Plaque unveiling
August 12, 2019