Pondwatch JE
Discover the wildlife living in Jersey’s ponds and learn how to monitor local species at our annual Pondwatch JE training session.
Get involved, help gather valuable sightings of Jersey’s pond life and become a trained Wild Volunteer to help us assess and conserve freshwater habitats and the species that they support.
What is Pondwatch JE?
Pondwatch JE is a project that aims to gather sightings of the wildlife living in Jersey’s ponds to help assess their conservation status, distribution and habitat requirements.
How can you help?
There are opportunities for everyone to take part. Depending on your interests, experience and the time you have available, you can currently get involved in two different ways:
Level 1
Spend 30 minutes looking for wildlife in ponds and send us your results. No experience or training is required, but we recommend that you attend the training event 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 nighttime torch surveys. You do not need experience, but you do need to attend the training event.
Training
An in-person training event is held at the start of the Pondwatch survey season each year.
The 2026 training event will take place on Saturday 21 February 2026 from 10am - 2pm 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
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 hello@biodiversity.je.
Jersey’s Amphibians
Western Toad Bufo spinosus
Known locally as the crapaud, this amphibian can be found throughout the island and breeds in both semi-natural water bodies and garden ponds. Rather than the spawn clumps laid by frogs, they lay strings of spawn.
Agile Frog Rana dalmatina
Jersey’s rarest amphibian, occurring in only a few ponds in the southwest of the island after almost going extinct in the 1980’s. A long-term conservation project is helping to safeguard this species in Jersey.
Palmate Newt Lissotriton helveticus
Jersey’s only native newt species. It is found in garden ponds and other water bodies, but is under-recorded. Its eggs are harder to spot than those of frogs and toads, as they lay them singly folded in the leaves of pond plants.
Resources
Here you will find: survey forms, survey guides, ID guides, species fact sheets, health and safety information and more:
Jersey Amphibian and Reptile Group (JARG) website.
PondWatch Partners: Government of Jersey, Jersey Biodiversity Centre, Jersey Amphibian and Reptile Group (JARG), Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC).
Pondwatch is the successor to both 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 contributed a great deal of valuable information that helped shape the design of Pondwatch and continues to inform conservation efforts for freshwater species.
