St Sampson's Marais / Ivy Castle

Description

St Sampson's Marais / Ivy Castle The area designated covers the Chateau des Marais and St. Sampson’s Marais. The Château des Marais is surrounded by fields which were historically an important ‘marais’ area: hence its historic name, its nickname being ‘Ivy Castle’. It was one of the richer areas botanically in the past but some of the best fields were damaged by dumping and land-raising in the 1960s/1970s. St Sampson’s Marais is more remote and less damaged but suffering from the presence of the invasive non-native parrot’s feathers, Myriophyllum aquaticum, in some fields. The largest fields form an extensive area of undisturbed land. The site is part of a relatively large area of low-lying grassland in the east of the Island, most of which has been farmed for many years. This has mainly been grazing as much of the land is too wet for cultivation or hay making. The land is often referred to as the ‘green lung’ of the urban areas of St Peter Port and St Sampson and is an important reservoir of some of our scarcer wetland species. This area is designated as a Site of Special Significance for its importance for a wide range of wildlife including rare and threatened species of insects, plants, birds, amphibians, reptiles and mammals.