Guernsey Archives - La Societe Guernesiaise

The Lost Royal Abbey at Cookham: Insights from Five Years of Excavations – A talk by Jonathan Charmley

PEhmann — Mon, 02 Mar 2026 19:30:00 +0000

The lost royal abbey at Cookham: Insights from five years of excavations – A talk by Jonathan Charmley

Monday 2^nd March at 7:30pm in the Frossard Theatre, Candie Gardens

Cookham Abbey was founded on the banks of the Thames in the eighth century and its remains were lost for over a thousand years. Reading University have been unearthing new evidence of life and death at this this exciting Anglo-Saxon site. Local Reading graduate, Jonathan Charmley, will be speaking about these recent excavations.

The talk is open to all Société Members.

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Natural History Section Outing – Le Grand Pre, followed by a visit to La Marette Orchard

PEhmann — Sun, 13 Sep 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Natural History Section Outing – Sunday 13th September at 10am (or earlier for keen people)

Le Grand Pre, followed by a visit to La Marette Orchard, a very short walk away. This meeting is being held in conjunction with Entomology Section, who will be setting traps on the previous evening.

There is limited parking at the reserve.

Meet at the reserve ///tailing.ample.tiny Perry’s Guide 7 G4 Event is weather dependent. For more information email naturalhistory@societe.org.gg

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Natural History Section Outing – visit the Colin McCathie Nature Reserve

PEhmann — Sun, 16 Aug 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Natural History Section Outing – Sunday 16th August at 2pm

Visit the Colin McCathie Nature Reserve (aka Vale Pond) to study insect life on Sea Aster.

Parking on coast opposite the reserve.

Meet by the hide ///charging.bikers.tooth Perry’s Guide 6 B5 Event is weather dependent. For more information email naturalhistory@societe.org.gg

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Natural History Section Outing – a walk around La Claire Mare Nature Reserve

PEhmann — Sun, 28 Jun 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Natural History Section Outing – Sunday 28th June at 2pm

A walk around La Claire Mare taking in the fields on Rue Des Mares, where much restoration work has been taking place.

Parking on coast.

Meet at entrance to the reserve. ///bubblegum.townhouse.seemly Perry’s Guide 12 C4 Event is weather dependent. For more information email naturalhistory@societe.org.gg

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Natural History Section Outing – a visit to the Silbe Nature Reserve

PEhmann — Sun, 17 May 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Natural History Section Outing – Sunday 17th May at 2pm

Visit the Silbe and enjoy a walk through this tranquil nature reserve, the first to be managed, now owned, by La Societe. This is a good time for insects and we will be hoping to see Large Tortoiseshell, a scarse butterfly which seems to have recolonised in recent years.

There is limited parking at the reserve. Other parking is available near St Peter’s Church, a 10minute walk away.

Meet at the entrance to the reserve ///slide.nationality.racoon Perry’s guide 26 D1 Event is weather dependent. For more information email naturalhistory@societe.org.gg

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Natural History Section Outing – La Societe’s fields in Rue Rocheuse

PEhmann — Sun, 19 Apr 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Natural History Section April outing – Sunday 19th April at 2pm

A visit to La Societe’s fields in Rue Rocheuse to look for the rare Adder’s Tongue, this being the only known site on Guernsey for this rare plant. If time allows, we will then walk to Rue De Vicheries to visit the field donated to LSG in 2025.

Parking on coast.

Meet in car park ///intellectual.gatekeeper.wearying Perry’s guide 20 B1 Event is weather dependent. For more information email naturalhistory@societe.org.gg

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Partnering for Island Conservation: A Way for Businesses to Make a Real Impact

PEhmann — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 17:38:52 +0000

Partnering for Island Conservation: A New Way for Businesses to Make a Real Impact

At La Société Guernesiaise, we’ve spent more than a hundred years studying, protecting and celebrating the natural heritage of Guernsey. From Archaeology and Botany to Marine Biology, Astronomy, Bats, Birds, Family History, Historic Buildings and beyond, our specialists have been at the heart of the island’s scientific and educational landscape.

Now we’re opening that expertise up to the business community with a brand‑new Corporate Partnership Programme. It’s designed to give companies a hands‑on, meaningful way to support island conservation while providing their staff with unforgettable outdoor learning experiences.

EY Channel Islands CSR Day, July 2025

Why a Corporate Partnership?

Many organisations today are looking for tangible CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) projects that go beyond a cheque‑box exercise. They want something that:

Delivers measurable environmental benefit – direct involvement in habitat restoration, wildlife monitoring and species protection.
Engages employees – team‑building outings that combine adventure with learning.
Boosts brand visibility – recognition on our website, newsletters and social channels.

Our new programme checks all those boxes, and it does so in a way that fits each company’s interests and schedule.

What Partners Get

Each corporate partner receives a four‑event package per year that we tailor to your team’s goals. Here’s what’s included:

Corporate Partners Receive:

Four CSR events each year, planned around a company’s interests and capacity
Social media and membership recognition for each event
Access to La Société publications and resources
Logo placement on website and selected partnership materials,including the newsletter

CSR Activities Include:

Wildlife Surveys (including Rockpooling and Dolphin Watching)
Bespoke wildlife tours (including meeting the Conservation Herd)
Lunch and learn sessions with conservation experts

Corproate Partnership PDF

“Many businesses are looking for practical ways to make a positive impact,” says Becky Ogier, Education and Conservation Lead at La Société Guernesiaise. “This programme gives them the opportunity to contribute directly to local conservation while offering valuable, educational experiences for their teams.”

An annual membership of £2,000 covers the entire four‑event package and directly funds our Education and Conservation Team. That contribution also helps us purchase essential tools, develop new educational resources, and plan long‑term projects with confidence.

Ready to Join?

If you’re interested in turning your CSR objectives into real‑world conservation work, we’d love to hear from you.

Learn more: https://societe.org.gg/wp/corporate
Contact Becky Ogier: ecl@societe.org.gg

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Pip Gallagher awarded the Science & Nature Grant 2025

PEhmann — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 10:09:58 +0000

My name is Pip Gallagher, and I have been very fortunate to receive La Société’s Science and Nature Grant for 2025, which will support my final year studying Marine Biology at the University of Plymouth.

In September I will begin research for my dissertation focused on the study of a non-native Mediterranean species of kelp, Laminaria ochroleuca, which is common in the Channel since expanding its range northwards.

In light of the recent Oceans documentary narrated by Sir David Attenborough, the extent to which kelp absorbs carbon from our atmosphere is, surprisingly, only starting to be understood – the documentary reports kelp to be a more efficient carbon sequestrator than rainforests or seagrass beds.

My research in September will be focused on the transport of carbon locked in the kelp itself, or biomass, and the rate at which broken fragments of kelp decay. I will be assessing the impacts of fouling by bryozoan animals, as well as factors such as light and heatwave-simulated temperatures. Understanding how this carbon-rich biomass is locked away in the ocean will be key to more reliably quantifying how much kelp forests contribute to Blue Carbon stores. Whilst my research will be based in Plymouth, the findings will be very relevant to Guernsey.

I hope that my findings, to be presented next summer, may spark more interest in Guernsey’s kelp forests, raise awareness of their services to us, and potentially promote research and mapping of them around the Bailiwick. I am very grateful to accept this bursary, and I hope to continue marine research at Master’s level.

Pip Gallagher

University of Plymouth

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Lyrid Meteor Shower: 14 to 30 April 2023 | Astronomy Guernsey

PEhmann — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 07:45:52 +0000

You can download a PDF of this article here

The Lyrid meteor shower is a burst of meteor activity and will occur between 14-30 April, peaking on the 22-23 April. The best time to see the shower is in the early morning of the peak day (23rd). Wait until after midnight when the radiant (R on the chart), in the constellation of Lyra, will have risen in the East. The later in the morning you wait, the higher the radiant will rise and the fewer meteors will be hidden below the horizon. But the closer you get to sunrise the brighter the sky is going to become, so plan accordingly!

Night sky chart showing the radiant for the Lyrids meteor shower in the constellation of Lyra

Meteors are small chunks of debris typically left in the wake of comets. When the Earth passes through this trail of material, some of it gets caught in Earth’s gravity and enters the atmosphere. The falling objects are moving at very high speeds (about 110,000 mph) and the air in front of them cannot get out of the way, so it compresses and heats up. Which in turn heats up the meteor to temperatures as high as 1600 ̊C, causing it to glow as it streaks across the sky. Most meteors are very small, little more than dust grains, so they burn up completely in the atmosphere.

Comet Lovejoy passed through the inner Solar System in 2015; comets tails are typically between 600,000 to 6 million miles long and leave behind a stream of debris. Image credit: Damian Peach

Orbit of Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, which at is greatest distance from the Sun (10 billion miles) takes it into inter-stellar space. The inset shows the inner Solar System and Earth, once a year passing through the orbit of Comet Thatcher, where it encounters the trail of debris left behind as the comet passed through the inner Solar System in 1861.

The Lyrid meteor shower is associated with Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, a long-period comet that last passed by Earth in 1861 at a distance of 30 million miles and is expected to return to the inner Solar System around 2276. It is the oldest recorded meteor shower still visible today, and was first recorded in 687 BCE.

The Perseids meteor shower from Bordeaux, Guernsey in August 2016. Image credit: Jean Dean

To watch the meteor shower, wrap up warm and find a dark location with a comfortable perch and let your eyes adjust to the dark, which takes about 20 minutes. While the Lyrid meteors will be visible all across the sky, look towards the East for the radiant (R), which is very close to the unmissable bright star Vega.

Also look out for the Summer Triangle asterism (noticeable pattern of stars) which comprises Vega, Deneb and Altair. This large triangle straddles the Milky Way; a dense band of stars and dust lanes that snakes across the sky and is the core of our Milky Way galaxy. The reappearance of this triangle after its winter absence, rising above the horizon in the early hours, is a welcome herald of the summer to come.

You can view the live images of Guernsey’s night sky on the La Société Guernesiaise Astronomy Section website: https://www.astronomy.org.gg

Dr Jean Dean
Secretary Astronomy Section of La Société Guernesiaise.

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Escapee finds fresh bale of hay – Guernsey Conservation Herd

PEhmann — Tue, 14 Feb 2023 12:01:51 +0000

Escapee finds fresh bale of hay

The Herd remain in their winter home at La Moye however they managed a great escape recently over the electric fence and found fresh hay which they helped themselves to. Within a couple of hours volunteers had managed to get them back within the electric fence.

Dave Bartram, Herd Manager, says he is looking forward to the delivery of two new calves later in February who will join the herd later in the year once they are settled in.

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