About the reserve

The land in the lower valley is owned by the Alderney Society and is of historic importance with the water mill north of it, bounded to the West by a States owned footpath.

The Bonne Terre although not a nature reserve, is an important site on Alderney. It is managed in part by the Alderney Society and in part by the Alderney Wildlife Trust although to date there has been no formal agreement put in place. 

The naturally regenerating woodland extends up the valley and throughout March and April the valley turns white with Hawthorn, Blackthorn and Elder blossom and provides one of the best displays of native Bluebells.

Above the pond in the middle of the site is a wetland area. Whilst this is very sloped and uneven it has in the past been managed as wet meadowland/grassland and was an important habitat for insects on the island. It has recently become overgrown with bracken although wet meadow plants do still exist there such as Greater Tussock Sedge, Water Mint and Great Willowherb.

Restoring this area to a wet meadow will be beneficial for the island's flora and fauna both in encouraging insects, butterflies and bees but also to hopefully reintroduce some rarer meadow/marsh plants such as the Southern Marsh Orchid and Ragged Robin that used to be found close to this site.