A video of the incident, which took place at around 3.45 pm, was posted on Jersey Wildlife’s Facebook page by former Senatorial election candidate Chris Perkins.
The 45-second clip shows an unidentified jet-skier apparently deliberately targeting a flock of four brent geese while riding his watercraft in an area with a five-knot inshore speed limit.
The incident, which has been reported to the relevant authorities, has enraged local environmentalists.
Mr Perkins, in his post accompanying the video, described the man as a ‘moron’, asking: ‘I wonder how he would feel if someone drove a motorbike around the inside of his house?’
JEP nature columnist Bob Tompkins said that incidents of this kind could have more serious repercussions on the migratory patterns of these birds.
‘This is totally crass and disrespectful behaviour, showing a complete lack of thought and a disregard for everything else around him. These birds have had to fly incredibly long distances from summer breeding grounds in the Arctic Circle to the north of Russia in order to get here – the least we can do is be respectful to them once they arrive.
‘Anyway, what was this jet skier doing so close into the shore?’
The States’ principal ecologist, John Pinel, said that the incident echoed findings in the World Wildlife Foundation’s 2018 ‘Living Planet’ report, which was released last week and highlighted ‘astonishing declines’ of up to 60% in the world’s animal populations in the last 40 years.
‘Migratory birds like brent geese are exactly the kinds of animals they’re talking about,’ he said. ‘They depend on undisturbed winter resting grounds in places such as Jersey, and unless they get that rest, some of them may not survive their onward journey. It is highly important that all Islanders respect these animals’ resting period.’
A spokesman for Jersey Coastguard said that they would be investigating the incident.
