Birding in France

One of the best parts of France for me was all the species of birds we saw. I found particular enjoyment in identifying them, as practically every bird I saw was a new species.

The single best birding spot we visited was the Camargue. All of the pools and mudflats created by the delta of the Rhone make this location one of the premier birding spots in Europe. And it certainly did not disappoint.

We birded the Camargue on two different occasions. The first time was with the entire family, and we saw a number of different species, including Flamingo (you've seen plenty of pictures of these),



Sacred Ibis, a bird that normally inhabits Africa (hmmm, wonder if this was a genuine wanderer, or just an escapee from a private collection?),



Common Shelduck (a rather flattering picture),



Grey Heron,



and Black-headed Gull (does the name confuse you? Don’t worry, the adults do actually have a black head during breeding season. This is either an adult that has molted its feathers already, or a juvenile bird).

We also saw White Stork, Red-crested Pochard, Golden Eagle, Black-winged Stilt, and Hoopoe. This last bird is probably my favorite European bird. It has a pronounced crest, and is boldly patterned in black and white stripes. And it flies with noticeable, long undulations.

The second time we birded the Camargue, it was only Dad, Margaret, Cameron, and I. Wonder why? Well, we left St.-Remy at 5:00 am so that we could be in the Camargue at 6:00. Before you all label me as completely ridiculous, I have to say that it was completely worth it. We saw a number of bird species

Unfortunately, I have no pictures of any of these birds, although a Google search should turn up most of them. We saw perhaps one of the neatest-looking waterbirds in the world: the Great-crested Grebe. The feathers on the sides of its face stick out, making it look as if the bird had cheek-armor on. There were shorebirds everywhere, including Greenshank, Spotted Redshank, Little Stint, and Pied Avocet.

I did casual birding in just about all of the other spots we visited as well. The Alps were another favorite location of mine, mostly because of the scenery. But there were good birds there as well, including Northern Wheatear, Skylark, and Yellowhammer.

At Les Baux, probably my favorite spot in France, we saw Alpine Swift, Black Redstart, and Blue Rock Thrush.

Below is our bird list for our entire trip. I figured that the bird buffs reading this blog would enjoy it. But I imagine that it won’t interest most of you :-)

Andrew

Bird List:

Little Grebe
Great Crested Grebe
Cormorant
Cattle Egret
Squacco Heron
Little Egret
Grey Heron
Purple Heron
White Stork
Glossy Ibis
Sacred Ibis
Spoonbill
Flamingo
Mute Swan
Greylag Goose
Shelduck
Mallard
Pochard
Red-crested Pochard
Scaup
Egyptian Vulture
Golden Eagle
Short-toed Eagle
Red Kite
Black Kite
Marsh Harrier
Montagu's Harrier
Common Buzzard
Sparrowhawk
Kestrel
Lesser Kestrel
Red-legged Partridge
Pheasant
Moorhen
Coot
Oystercatcher
Avocet
Black-winged Stilt
Little Ringed Plover
Ringed Plover
Lapwing
Little Stint
Wood Sandpiper
Green Sandpiper
Common Sandpiper
Spotted Redshank
Greenshank
Curlew
Whimbrel
Snipe
Black-headed Gull
Yellow-legged Gull
Little Tern
Sandwich Tern
Gull-billed Tern
Common Tern
Rock Dove
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
Turtle Dove
Swift
Pallid Swift
Alpine Swift
Hoopoe
Bee-eater
Skylark
Sand Martin
Crag Martin
Barn Swallow
House Martin
White Wagtail
Yellow Wagtail
Robin
Black Redstart
Wheatear
Blue Rock Thrush
Blackbird
Blackcap
Zitting Cisticola
Willow Warbler
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Magpie
Jackdaw
Carrion Crow
Starling
House Sparrow
Tree Sparrow
Goldfinch
Greenfinch
Yellowhammer