Virtually no records of Sark’s profusion of wildflowers were kept before the nineteenth century. In 1564 Helier de Carteret would have found the island a windswept plateau top covered in brambles, bracken and furze (whin or gorse) with valleys devoid of trees. The gardener, Thomas  Knowlton (1691 – 1781), mentioned a white foxglove in 1726. Professor CC Babington recorded 252 plants in 1838, and published his Primitiae Florae Sarnicae the…

In 1882 Victorian naturalist WA Luff listed 27 species of butterflies on Sark, and 48 moths.  He mistakenly thought that though Sark was smaller than Guernsey it boasted a greater number of species, in fact, Guernsey has about twice the fauna.  However, some of the rarer Guernsey species are comparatively common on Sark, e.g. Lappet moth (Gastropacha quercifolia). In his introduction to ‘Insects of Sark’  Luff pointed out that although…

Our dawn choruses in spring are full of song – in valleys such as Dixcart Valley the warbler species are mainly represented by Blackcap, Common Whitethroat, Willow Warbler and Garden Warbler.  Other warblers such as Cetti’s Warbler and Icterine Warbler sometimes make an appearance.  The fruity warble of the Blackbird, the loud burst of song from the undergrowth of the Wren, the repeated notes of the Song Thrush, the Chiffchaff’s…

Sark has miles of breath-taking coastline with spectacular scenery and a great choice of sandy bays or pebbly coves to explore, though you have to be prepared for a bit of an expedition to reach some of them. Sark is a plateau island, therefore most of the beaches involve a combination of steps and paths which can be fairly steep. Sea bathing in Sark is also a wonderful experience. The…