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Collecting in Jersey, October 2003

by Selina Wilkins
Photography by Selina Wilkins

I had the opportunity to go to Jersey Island on business, and decided to extend my visit to do some shelling. Luckily for me, a club member, Janet Sawyer, gave me some excellent tips so I was able to visit the most worthwhile beaches, and avoid disappointments. Time however was limited, so I only had two full days, with family to keep happy too. These are my findings, and recollections of a most enjoyable experience.

We travelled with Brittany Ferries from Weymouth to St Helier, Jersey. It was an early morning crossing, on a fast sea cat, so we arrived in time for lunch. The deal included ferry, car, and hotel with breakfast included. There are many different deals depending on whether you want your own car, car hire, and your requirements for accommodation.
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So in the afternoon we travelled around the island – starting at the north-east corner with Fliquet Bay, accessing from La Coupe Point, and working our way anticlockwise around the island. Some bays and villages had limited access due to a car rally for which many roads were closed or partially closed (proceed with your own caution!) The north of the island had lots of little beaches, with steep cliffs, rocky shores, tiny patches of sand, and little twisty roads and pathways. The shells were mainly of the genera Patella and Gibbula, with lots of Mondonta lineata. However I was on the trail of Calliostoma zizyphinum (like Jonathan, see his article on Western Scotland). I was delighted to find just one Calliostoma zizyphinum beached and long dead on the beach of Rozel Bay. To me it was the most beautiful shell, and was the promise of riches yet to come. However at this stage of the holiday I hadn't learnt about the tidal zones, and did not work my way out onto the central rocks, else I probably would have found their natural habitat and many more.

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Everyone said "Green Island" held all the riches of shell collecting, but to watch out for the incoming tide. On first perusal we found very little – one Glycymeris glycymeris and only one Venerupis pullastra. It was a very hard beach to work. You have to walk well beyond the tower, with wellies or boots, and meander through the rock pools and rock mounds and then find the treasures which are then mainly covered in green fungi – so require lots of cleaning. Maybe this is why it is called Green Island. Venerupis were prolific, as were the abundant Monodonta lineata.

However if you go west of Green Island on the sandy beach you will find many of the shells, beached and well dead, no green mould, and just sitting for picking up. I loved this beach. I was very excited to find at the water's edge Calyptraea chinensis, which I had seen many times in books, but never found myself. I also loved the Patella with very variable colours, and the Littorina obtusata – bright yellow, orange and even banded.

My other favourite beach had to be St Aubin. At the west end, the opposite end to the white train station, near an icecream parlour, there was an area where a current regularly deposited shells in great swathes. There were three areas. Furthest from the shore are many Crepidula fornicata which are boring to many but the variation in size and colour I found intriguing, and mixed in were Gibbula magus which I had never found before. Here they were green and white, brown and white, pink and white, small and big. All beached, but some in good condition. Also, for those who searched, the wonderful Calliostoma zizyphinum.
Next there was a band of common shells, Cerastoderma edule, and many Gibbula umbilicalis, G. pennanti and G. cineraria, with of course Monodonta lineata, and one of my favourites, the Littorina obtusata. There were also very good examples of Nassarius reticulatus and Ocenebra erinacea.
Then there was another band of shells, the micro shells, mainly Tricolia pullus, Trivia monacha and Bittium reticulatum. These I scooped up to examine later, and with John Fisher's help found I had a little treasure trove of miniatures (see below).
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Just on the outskirts of St Aubin there is an amazing shell garden. It is a must to see. The whole garden is landscaped with shells. The garden was created by Colin Soudain who placed the first shell in 1957. It is divided into different areas – lower garden, upper garden, pets' corner and little shell shop. Several million shells have been used to create the amazing masterpieces of a church, boat, windmill, seahorse, octopus, heron and fountains. Every surface is covered, every wall, even the edges of the arch which leads into the garden. Most impressively 80% of the shells have been collected locally (since 1957). I could see pectens, dog cockles, cockles, moon shells and trivia, just to name a few. John, the son of Colin Soudain, now runs the garden, and he is referred to as "Shell John". He has kept to the family tradition and adds to the garden every year. It is open daily 9:45 am–4:45 pm, Sunday 11:45am–2:45pm. Admittance is £1.20 per adult, 60p per child, free for the under 5s. [Update: the Shell Garden continued as an attraction until 2012, but the property was sold in 2015 and the garden dismantled.]

We enjoyed our brief sojourn in Jersey, and can say St Aubin's beach is a great family beach with great soft sand, little trains, icecream, with trampolines and cinema at the St Helier end. Paul and Christopher highly recommend a journey on the puddleduck to Elizabeth Castle, and yes, they still fire their cannons. They also loved their visit to Jersey Zoo, as founded by Gerald Durrell. And we were all very struck with the German Underground Hospital which is a museum covering the occupation of Jersey by the Germans in the World War II.
Fliquet Bay
Patella aspera, Roding 1798
Patella vulgata, Linnaeus 1758 (La Coupe Point)
Gibbula cineraria, Linnaeus 1758
Gibbula umbilicalis, da Costa 1778
Gibbula pennanti, Philippi 1846
Monodonta lineata, da Costa 1778
Littorina obtusata, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina saxatilis, Olivi 1792
Nucella lapillus, Linnaeus 1758
Ocenebra erinacea, Linnaeus 1758
Nassarius reticulatus, Linnaeus 1758
Cerastoderma edule, Linnaeus 1758
Venus verrucosa, Linnaeus 1758
Rozel Bay
Patella aspera, Roding 1798
Patella depressa, Pennant 1777
Patella vulgata, Linnaeus 1758
Calliostoma zizyphinum, Linnaeus 1758
Gibbula umbilicalis, da Costa 1778
Gibbula pennanti, Philippi 1846
Monodonta lineata, da Costa 1778
Littorina saxatilis, Olivi 1792
Nucella lapillus, Linnaeus 1758
Nassarius reticulatus, Linnaeus 1758
Cerastoderma edule, Linnaeus 1758
Green Island
Patella depressa, Pennant 1777
Patella vulgata, Linnaeus 1758
Helcion pellucida laevis, Linnaeus 1758
Calliostoma zizyphinum, Linnaeus 1758
Gibbula magus, Linnaeus 1767
Gibbula cineraria, Linnaeus 1758
Gibbula umbilicalis, da Costa 1778
Gibbula pennanti, Philippi 1846
Monodonta lineata, da Costa 1778
Littorina obtusata, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina saxatilis, Olivi 1792
Littorina littorea, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina nigrolineata, Philippi 1846
Calyptraea chinensis, Linnaeus 1758
Trivia monacha, da Costa 1778
Glycymeris glycymeris, Linnaeus 1758 (Le Nez Point)
Ostrea edulis, Linnaeus 1758
Lucinoma borealis, Linnaeus 1758
Laevicardium crassa, Gmelin 1791
Spisula solida, Linnaeus 1758
Spisula truncata, Linnaeus 1758
Venerupis aurea, Gmelin 1791
Venerupis decussata, Linnaeus 1758
Venerupis pullastra, Montagu 1803
Venerupis rhomboides, Pennant 1777
West of Green Island
Patella aspera, Roding 1798
Patella depressa, Pennant 1777
Patella vulgata, Linnaeus 1758
Calliostoma zizyphinum, Linnaeus 1758
Monodonta lineata, da Costa 1778
Littorina obtusata, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina littorea, Linnaeus 1758
Trivia monacha, da Costa 1778
Nucella lapillus, Linnaeus 1758
Venus verrucosa, Linnaeus 1758
St Aubin
Diodora graeca, Linnaeus 1758
Patella vulgata, Linnaeus 1758
Calliostoma zizyphinum, Linnaeus 1758
Gibbula magus, Linnaeus 1767
Gibbula cineraria, Linnaeus 1758
Gibbula umbilicalis, da Costa 1778
Gibbula pennanti, Philippi 1846
Monodonta lineata, da Costa 1778
Jujubinus striatus, Linnaeus 1758
Tricolia pullus, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina obtusata, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina saxatilis, Olivi 1792
Littorina littorea, Linnaeus 1758
Lacuna vincta, Montagu 1803
Rissoa parva, da Costa 1778
Turritella communis, Risso 1826
Bittium reticulatum, da Costa 1778
Crepidula fornicata, Linnaeus 1758
Calyptraea chinensis, Linnaeus 1758
Trivia arctica, Pulteney 1799
Trivia monacha, da Costa 1778
Nucella lapillus, Linnaeus 1758
Ocenebra erinacea, Linnaeus 1758
Buccinium undatum, Linnaeus 1758
Nassarius reticulatus, Linnaeus 1758
Retusa obtusa, Montagu 1803
Hydrobia ulvae, Pennant 1777
Aequipecten opercularis, Linnaeus 1758
Chlamys varia, Linnaeus 1758
Anomia ephippium, Linnaeus 1758
Acanthocardia echinata, Linnaeus 1758
Cerastoderma edule, Linnaeus 1758
Mactra corallina, Linnaeus 1758
Spisula solida, Linnaeus 1758
Macoma balthica, Linnaeus 1758
Callista chione, Linnaeus 1758
Chamelea striatula, da Costa 1778
Clausinella fasciata, da Costa 1778
Dosinia exoleta, Linnaeus 1758
Venerupis pullastra, Montagu 1803
Venerupis rhomboides, Pennant 1777
Venus verrucosa, Linnaeus 1758
Abra alba, W. Wood 1802
Abra tenuis, Montagu 1803
Rissostomia membranacea, J. Adams 1800
Oenopota rufa, Montagu 1803

Le Hocq Point
Patella aspera, Roding 1798
Patella vulgata, Linnaeus 1758 (from tower)
Gibbula umbilicalis, da Costa 1778
Gibbula pennanti, Philippi 1846
Monodonta lineata, da Costa 1778
Littorina obtusata, Linnaeus 1758
Littorina saxatilis, Olivi 1792
Nucella lapillus, Linnaeus 1758
Mytilus edulis, Linnaeus 1758
Pecten maximus, Linnaeus 1758
Cerastoderma edule, Linnaeus 1758
Venerupis pullastra, Montagu 1803
Venerupis rhomboides, Pennant 1777
Venus verrucosa, Linnaeus 1758
John Fisher helped me identify my shell micros from St Aubin. Knowing his interest I sent him a little bag of grit – and he has identified a further 25 species that are not mentioned above. So is a visit to Jersey worth it? You bet.
St Aubin micros
Acmaea virginea
, Müller 1776
Alvania carinata, da Costa 1778
Alvania lactea, Michaud 1830
Arca lactea, Linnaeus 1758
Brachystoma albella, Loven 1846
Capulus ungaricus, Linnaeus 1758
Chrysallida sp. Emarginula conica, Lamarck 1801
Hiatella arctica
, Linnaeus 1758
Lacuna pallidula
, da Costa 1778
Lacuna parva
, da Costa 1778
Lasaea rubra
, Montagu 1803
Littorina neglecta
, Bean 1844
Loripes lucinalis
, Lamarck 1801
Manzonia crassa
, Kanmacher 1798
Mysella bidentata
, Montagu 1803
Nucula tenuis
, Montagu 1803
Onoba semicostata
, Montagu 1803
Parvicardium exiguum
, Gmelin 1791
Potamopyrgus antipodarum Gray 1843
Rissoa lilacina
, Recluz 1843
Thyasira flexuosa
,
Montagu 1803
Timoclea ovata
, Pennant 1777
Tornus subcarinatus
, Montagu 1803
Truncatella subcylindrica
, Linnaeus 1767

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