With growing concerns that red squirrels could soon become extinct in England, one Channel Island is a corner of the British Isles where they maintain a stronghold.
Jersey is home to a thriving red squirrel population, thanks to the complete absence of grey squirrels, which carry a virus deadly to their red cousins.
Red squirrels are endangered in the UK, with about 120,000 to 160,000 left in the wild and various projects are aiming to boost those numbers.
There have some strongholds in England, external, particularly islands, and 75% of the British population is in Scotland, external.
However, despite not being native to Jersey, Henry Glynn, an ecologist with the National Trust of Jersey, said they “really are iconic for Jersey”.
He said: “When you speak to people who have come over to visit the island from the UK, a lot of them will say that one of the things they want to do whilst here is to see a red squirrel, because they’re so rare and so difficult to see in large parts of the UK.
“That is actually really special for them.”
Red squirrels are not native to Jersey, having been introduced in 1885.
However, Glynn described them as “naturalised”, having become “assimilated into the natural environment” over many years.
The animals have previously featured in Visit Jersey, external tourism campaigns, including one fronted by conservationist Ben Fogle.
