Because of their individuality, the hahitat features for each island remains very distinctive. In the 

 years following the end of the 1939-45 World War, there has heen a marked increase in urbanization in most 

 of the inhabited islands, plus the inevitable vast increase in motorised vehicles. 



On Alderney the town of St. Anne has noticeably increased in size and buildings have sprung up 

 along what was still in the 1950s, quiet country lanes, especially since the mid-1960s. From 1958 to 1962 

 when the author used to camp at the head of Longy Bay, Longy Road was a quiet lane, bearing a few houses 

 and a couple of small wartime cemeteries. The lane continued until it met the Val de Fontaine, before 

 reaching the Chateau de Longis (Nunnery) lying next to an old farmhouse at the foot of Essex Hill. By 1984 

 the area was virtually unrecognisable. Heavy traffic threatened to replace the pedestrian in this once quiet 

 lane that forms part of a circuitous road route around the island. Houses continued all the way down to 

 Longy Bay and covered the old camping area, and a restaurant replaced the farmhouse. A 9-hole golf-course 

 covered a once resplendent central meadow, and from a boat, the general skyline of the island from Bray 

 Bay to Fort Albert was almost beyond recognition. 



In the 1950s on Guernsey, due to the ever increasing building that was underway, especially the 

 acreage covered in greenhouses, inland rural areas were vanishing, along with the destruction of some fine 

 habitats. The habitat loss meant a diminishing amount of wildlife, or, alternatively, that wildlife was 

 retreating to coastal areas. Fortunately, pockets of woodland, notably in the Parish of Forest above Petit Bot, 

 and in St. Saviour around the Reservoir, also in St. Pierre du Bois around Pleinmont, still offer splendid 

 habitats for wildlife. 



Because of the long-term leases held by the land owners for the smaller islands of Herm, Jethou and 

 Brecqhou, the islands largely escaped extensive urban building and the worst effects of commercialised 

 tourism. Apart from the recent wayward extravagancies on Brecqhou, the island has hardly changed in 

 character. Herm has far fewer hedgerows and less woodland than Sark. However, since 1949, Herm has been 

 very well managed. Following periods of a long and chequered history, present management ensures that the 

 island loses none of its charm and that it's cared for countryside and famous hotel gardens will continue to 

 support its extraordinary wildlife diversity. The gardeners, trained initially at Kew Gardens, now manage the 

 hotel's resplendent and somewhat exotic gardens, thus ensuring attraction for the hotel patrons. Deservedly, 

 the gardens were chosen in 2001 to represent the Guernsey Bailiwick in the 'Britain in Bloom' competition 

 for 2002, and in September 2002, it was with pride, announced that they had won. It is difficult to imagine 

 that at an earlier period in time, Herm's major industry was granite mining. 



The people of Sark had over the years, valiantly supported the island's own unique character and 

 have cared for the wide variety of habitats for which the island has become famous. Motorised private 

 vehicles are still forbidden, though admittedly, the numbers of tractors have increased well beyond the 

 limitations once imposed by the Dame of Sark, and the numbers of bicycles are somewhat excessive in the 

 peak summer months. The presence of horse-drawn carriages as a popular means of conveyance is however, 

 a pleasure to all. Sark has remained a peaceful haven, a mostly self-governing village community headed by 

 The Seigneur. Although having to some extent decreased its self-sufficiency farming and a good deal of its 

 fishing industry, the island now embraces an economy largely based on tourism. Care has been maintained 

 in preserving the countryside features on both Herm and Sark, proportionally, the wildlife still flourishes on 

 these two islands to a possibly greater degree than that of any other island. 



For a longer period than the other islands, Jersey, along with Guernsey, contains the largest 

 metropolitan areas of all the islands, and has had to cope with the problems caused by urbanised sprawl. 

 Unfortunately, famous wildlife areas that were once carefully preserved, have been gradually encroached 

 upon, though in recent years the authorities have attempted to reverse this situation and are becoming more 

 mindful of their heritage. Being the largest island also means that it receives most tourists and all the 

 pressures that this brings. Building and other forms of development have always tended to be excessive. 

 Like the other larger islands, Jersey has become a noted tax haven. Jersey contains some habitat areas that 

 are virtually unique to the islands. The extensive sand-dune area around St. Ouen's Pond is a noticeably 

 important feature, also the greater extent of woodland and fresh water sources that the island supports and in 

 particular the presence of a few marshy areas that provide breeding habitats for some local insect species that 

 are unknown in the other islands. 



An introduction to the Lepidoptera 



Due to the proximity of the islands to the Continent, the number of islands, and the often very 

 individualistic and varied habitats that they provide, there is present, a remarkably diverse Lepidoptera 

 fauna. The number amounts to about half the total for the entire British Isles. From early in the 19th century, 

 the plant life has been fairly consistently well documented by local botanists. The fauna has also received 

 considerable attention and covers all major animal groups. The invertebrates have also been attracting local 

 attention, though understandably, their identifications have always posed problems through lack of expertise 

 and shortage of available textbooks. Among the insects, butterflies and moths have always received the most 



