Manx Loaghtans flock grows to more than 450 in Jersey

The Manx Loaghtans were brought to Jersey in 2009 to manage habitats and mainland across Jersey

A breed of sheep that arrived in Jersey from the Isle of Man as a flock of 20 in 2009 has grown to more than 450.

The Manx Loaghtans were brought to the island to help manage the countryside, the National Trust for Jersey said.

It said they were the nearest replacement for Jersey's native breeds, which are thought to have become extinct hundreds of years ago.

Aaron Le Couteur, from the trust, said the sheep were "thriving" in St Ouen's wetlands.

"The story started back in 2009 when the trust imported 20 pregnant ewes from the UK," he said.

"The story has gone from strength to strength really, from that point to the point now, where we're actively using the Manx to manage habitats all across the island.

"They're vital really, in some ways you can look at it like putting a missing link back into the puzzle, so having these herbivores they can go round and graze, one of the beauties of the Manx is that they've got an appetite for lots of different types of verbiage."

Aaron Le Couteur said it was important to have a "pocket of them here in Jersey" in case there was a need to "replenish populations elsewhere in the UK"

Mr Le Couteur said the Manx Loaghtans had helped reach and maintain areas humans could not access properly.

"They're are an incredible alternative to mechanisation... there's lots of places we manage with the Manx that you just couldn't physically get on, even humans struggle to stand upright on some of these things," he said.

"The Manx are just incredibly good at helping us manage those areas that are incredibly vital to Jersey's ecology and Jersey's wildlife that otherwise wouldn't be managed, and overtime would degrade and would be lost.

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