The Alderney Wildlife Trust is a trust based in

Alderney Alderney (; french: Aurigny ; Auregnais: ) is the northernmost of the inhabited Channel Islands. It is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown dependency. It is long and wide. The island's area is , making it the third-largest ...

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

. The Trust works to preserve the island's

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

, to promote the

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

of Alderney's terrestrial and marine habitats, to encourage a sustainable Alderney, and to educate the public about the importance of the island's wildlife. The Trust helps to manage Alderney's two

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

s at Longis and Vau du Saou. The Trust operates through a company limited by guarantee. It is administered by a committee who are directly elected by the Trust's membership. Its headquarters is at the Alderney Wildlife Trust Office in

Saint Anne, Alderney St Anne or Saint Anne is the capital and the main town of Alderney in the Channel Islands. Geography Saint Anne is located about off the coast of Auderville in the Manche department of the Normandy region of north-western France. As of 2010, i ...

. It is part of the

Wildlife Trusts The Wildlife Trusts, the trading name of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts, is an organisation made up of 46 local Wildlife Trusts in the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man and Alderney. The Wildlife Trusts, between them, look after more than 2, ...

partnership of 46 wildlife trusts in the

British Islands The British Islands is a term within the law of the United Kingdom which refers collectively to the following four polities: * the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (formerly the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland); ...

, and runs the Alderney Records Centre, whose patron is Dr.

George McGavin George C. McGavin is a British entomologist, author, academic, television presenter and explorer. Background McGavin attended Daniel Stewart's College, a private school in Edinburgh, then studied Zoology at the University of Edinburgh from 1 ...

, in partnership with the Alderney Society. Alderney - Vogelfelsen

Alderney and its surrounding islets support a rich flora and fauna. Trees are rather scarce, as many were cut down in the 17th century to fuel the lighthouses on Alderney and the

Casquets Les Casquets or (The) Casquets ( ) is a group of rocks eight miles (13 km) northwest of Alderney in the Channel Islands; they are administered by the Bailiwick of Guernsey. The rocks are part of an underwater sandstone ridge. Other parts ...

. There are notable colonies of

puffins Puffins are any of three species of small alcids (auks) in the bird genus ''Fratercula''. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crev ...

Burhou Burhou (pronounced ''ber-ROO'') is a small island about northwest of Alderney that is part of the Channel Islands. It has no permanent residents, and is a bird sanctuary, so landing there is banned from March 15 to August 1. The island's wildl ...

and

gannets Gannets are seabirds comprising the genus ''Morus'' in the family Sulidae, closely related to boobies. Gannets are large white birds with yellowish heads; black-tipped wings; and long bills. Northern gannets are the largest seabirds in the N ...

on Les Étacs. The Blonde hedgehog is a species native to Alderney. In August 2005, the west coast of Alderney and associated islands, including

and

Ortac Ortac is a small uninhabited islet about west of the coast of Alderney near to the islet of Burhou. It measures roughly , and rises above the sea level.

, were designated as Ramsar wetlands of international importance.

References

External links

*
Alderney Wildlife Trust
{{Alderney topics , state=collapsed Wildlife Trusts of the United Kingdom Organisations based in Alderney