La Société Guernesiaise, a conservation charity, has completed a year-long study of Guernsey’s wild ferret population with funding from the government’s Strategy for Nature program. The research used 15 motion-activated camera traps positioned in areas where ferrets had previously been observed attacking wildlife, including La Claire Mare Nature Reserve in St Peters.
The charity had been aware of the feral ferret presence on the island but lacked detailed knowledge about their behavior and distribution. Through the camera trap initiative, researchers captured thousands of photographs and videos that are currently being analyzed. Project leader Leah Cottell described the work as extremely time-consuming but yielded valuable information about the animals’ habits and movements.
According to researchers, ferrets are attracted to areas near water sources where ground-nesting birds lay eggs, which provide a food source. The ferrets are not native to Guernsey and are classified as an invasive species. Cottell suggested their presence likely resulted from domestic ferrets being released into the wild, possibly beginning in the 1980s, with the population expanding over subsequent decades due to their resemblance to native polecats allowing them to survive unnoticed.
The analysis of collected data is expected to take several months to complete. Once finished, La Société Guernesiaise plans to publish a comprehensive report on its findings. The project was one of 11 local initiatives to receive support from the Strategy for Nature fund during the previous funding cycle. Applications for the next round of Strategy for Nature funding remain open until 25 October.
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