Pondwatch JE 2025 - Free Training Event

The annual Pondwatch training event returns for its seventh year in 2025.

Date and Time: Saturday, February 15 · 10am - 2pm.

Location: Frances Le Sueur Centre, St Ouen.

Reserve your place via Eventbrite

What is Pondwatch JE?

Pondwatch JE is a project that aims to gather sightings of Jersey’s pond life to help assess their conservation status, distribution and habitat requirements.

How can you help?

There are opportunities for everyone to get involved. Depending on your interest, available time and experience you can currently get involved in two ways.

Level 1

Spend 30 minutes looking for wildlife in ponds and send us your results here. No experience or training is required but we recommend that you attend the annual training event (details below) to find out more about the survey and the incredible diversity of wildlife that ponds support.

Level 2

Carry out 5 surveys, each taking 30‒60 minutes. You will search for amphibians and other pond life at a pond using three methods; visual searches, netting and night time torch surveys. You do not need experience but you will need to attend a training event.

Training

An in-person training event is held at the start of the Pondwatch survey season each year.

The 2024 training event will take place on Saturday 17th February 2024 from 10am - 4pm at the Frances Le Sueur Centre, St Ouen.

This free event is open everyone although we ask that anyone wishing to attend reserves a place via Eventbrite

Schedule of the day:​

09:45 – Arrival /Coffee

10:00 - Welcome and introduction to Pondwatch (Tim Wright)

10:15 - A brief review of what we have learnt from the last six years of Pondwatch (Tim Wright)

10:30 - Pondlife identification – amphibians, reptiles and fish (John Wilkinson)

10:40 - John Wilkinson – Amphibian and Reptile Conservation - Pond Life identification

11:00 - Pondlife identification – dragonflies and other invertebrates (John Wilkinson)

11:20 - Break

11:30 - Carrying out Pondwatch Level 1 (pond survey methods and data recording (Emily Wagdin)

11:55 - Carrying out Pondwatch Level 2 (pond survey methods including habitat assessment, safety and biosecurity) (John Wilkinson)

12:30 - Data entry for Pondwatch Level 2 (Emily Wagdin)

12:40 - Practical field session – demonstration, practical session and Q&A

​13:30 - Lunch and opportunity to sign up as a volunteer​

At the end of the session there will be an opportunity sign up, discuss ponds sites and allocate ponds if needed. Once signed up you can take equipment and sign the relevant forms.

The sessions are free and open to anyone, but please sign up for a ticket, to help us plan numbers. Light refreshments will be available, but please note we may not be able to cater for all allergies and dietary requirements.

What if I don't have a pond of my own?

If you don't have a pond of your own to survey the Pondwatch team can allocate you one. Please speak to one of the team at the training event or contact wildaboutjersey@gov.je.

PondWatch Partners: Government of Jersey, Jersey Biodiversity Centre, Jersey Amphibian and Reptile Group (JARG), Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC).

Pondwatch JE is the successor to the National Amphibian and Reptile Recording Scheme (NARRS) which ran in Jersey from 2007 to 2018, and Toadwatch which ran from 2005 to 2018. During this time volunteers provided a great deal of information which has been used to inform the design of Pondwatch as well as influence efforts to protect pond wildlife.