temmie
Well-known member
Another vote for Termignon. I was there a week before Diedert (around 9th of July last year). It seems like a very popular place to see the Partridge, and, based on sightings, it can be seen throughout the summer (zoom in on the map to see all observations):
france.observation.org
My experience was quick and easy: as most borders were still closed in the Summer of 2021 (or complext with tests required), I decided to do a quick Tour de France to clean up some target species. I left Belgium around 21.30 and drove through the night, straight to Termignon (I slept 2-3 hours in the car somewhere South of Paris though). Around 10AM I arrived on the parking spot: 45°18'54.1"N 6°49'46.0"E · Termignon, 73500 Val-Cenis, France . The parking was filling up quickly with people intending to walk the trail (Going to the 'Lac Blanc' I never reached). The whole landscape / area is visually very impressive / stunning.
I heard a Partridge calling around 11.30, from the trail. After this first excitement, all was quiet. and I couldn't find the bird on the slope. I shifted my attention to some other birds (Citril finch on the parking, Short-toed Snake Eagle, Golden Eagle, Ring Ouzel, Common Rock Thrush, White-winged Snowfinch, Alpine Accentor,... Bearded Vulture and Rock Ptarmigan higher up), and butterflies. Around 15.00 I was back at the parking, and exhausted. I decided to sleep some hours (with one door open for the heat, other doors locked, key on the dashboard...) and the predictable thing happened: I woke up, stepped out of the car to get a bottle of water from the trunk. But I closed the door and the whole car was locked, with keys inside...!
So there I was, around 17.00 in the afternoon in the high mountains, 10 hrs drive from wher the spare key was, on a Friday evening, with most of the parking empty except for 2 cars. A long story short: the one car was an old French guy with a toolbox full of torque wrenches. The other car was a VW minibus and he was very complementary: he didn't have anything in terms of tools, but he randomly pulled out a very thin steel wire. So after scratching the doors of the car with the torque wrenches, forcing them in order to get the steel wire inside, we managed to open the car the old-fashioned way, fishing for the door handle in the inside! It took about one and a half hour... Still very gratefull to those 2 guys, the French know how to steal a car it seems!
After this moment of stress, the whole parking was empty. I was planning to either sleep there (putting up the tent somewhere out of view, or going down to the village where the night would be warmer), in order to try and see the Partridge in the morning. But there were still some evening hours left. So I walked back to the trail, in the knowledge that the Partridge should still be on that slope. The sun was now behind the slope, so it was getting cooler and quieter on the mountain. But suddenly a Rock Partridge couldn't help himself and called like if there was no tomorrow. I soon located it (as Diedert said) snowcock-like against the skyline. The beast soon walked down a little bit so I could take a picture showing some contrast. It was still far away, and as it's not allowed to walk in the meadows, one has to do with what's available.
france.observation.org
That same night, I drove down and on the way to my next target: Black-headed Bunting near Valensole (I dipped though). Some days after I left Termignon, a brilliant male Black-headed Bunting was seen in the valley...! Goes to show one shouldn't leave too quickly!
france.observation.org
So all in all, Termignon is definitely more than just the Partridge: it's a terrific destination for alpine birds and butterflies, and is probably best between half of June and the whole month of July when the meadows are blooming the most. Views on the snow-capped mountains are impressive, and the birding spots can be reached on a tarmac road.
Biodiversité France
Biodiversité France - All observations from nature online
My experience was quick and easy: as most borders were still closed in the Summer of 2021 (or complext with tests required), I decided to do a quick Tour de France to clean up some target species. I left Belgium around 21.30 and drove through the night, straight to Termignon (I slept 2-3 hours in the car somewhere South of Paris though). Around 10AM I arrived on the parking spot: 45°18'54.1"N 6°49'46.0"E · Termignon, 73500 Val-Cenis, France . The parking was filling up quickly with people intending to walk the trail (Going to the 'Lac Blanc' I never reached). The whole landscape / area is visually very impressive / stunning.
I heard a Partridge calling around 11.30, from the trail. After this first excitement, all was quiet. and I couldn't find the bird on the slope. I shifted my attention to some other birds (Citril finch on the parking, Short-toed Snake Eagle, Golden Eagle, Ring Ouzel, Common Rock Thrush, White-winged Snowfinch, Alpine Accentor,... Bearded Vulture and Rock Ptarmigan higher up), and butterflies. Around 15.00 I was back at the parking, and exhausted. I decided to sleep some hours (with one door open for the heat, other doors locked, key on the dashboard...) and the predictable thing happened: I woke up, stepped out of the car to get a bottle of water from the trunk. But I closed the door and the whole car was locked, with keys inside...!
So there I was, around 17.00 in the afternoon in the high mountains, 10 hrs drive from wher the spare key was, on a Friday evening, with most of the parking empty except for 2 cars. A long story short: the one car was an old French guy with a toolbox full of torque wrenches. The other car was a VW minibus and he was very complementary: he didn't have anything in terms of tools, but he randomly pulled out a very thin steel wire. So after scratching the doors of the car with the torque wrenches, forcing them in order to get the steel wire inside, we managed to open the car the old-fashioned way, fishing for the door handle in the inside! It took about one and a half hour... Still very gratefull to those 2 guys, the French know how to steal a car it seems!
After this moment of stress, the whole parking was empty. I was planning to either sleep there (putting up the tent somewhere out of view, or going down to the village where the night would be warmer), in order to try and see the Partridge in the morning. But there were still some evening hours left. So I walked back to the trail, in the knowledge that the Partridge should still be on that slope. The sun was now behind the slope, so it was getting cooler and quieter on the mountain. But suddenly a Rock Partridge couldn't help himself and called like if there was no tomorrow. I soon located it (as Diedert said) snowcock-like against the skyline. The beast soon walked down a little bit so I could take a picture showing some contrast. It was still far away, and as it's not allowed to walk in the meadows, one has to do with what's available.
Perdrix bartavelle - Alectoris graeca 2021-07-09 | Biodiversité France
Biodiversité France - All observations from nature online
That same night, I drove down and on the way to my next target: Black-headed Bunting near Valensole (I dipped though). Some days after I left Termignon, a brilliant male Black-headed Bunting was seen in the valley...! Goes to show one shouldn't leave too quickly!
Bruant mélanocéphale - Emberiza melanocephala 2021-07-13 | Biodiversité France
Biodiversité France - All observations from nature online
So all in all, Termignon is definitely more than just the Partridge: it's a terrific destination for alpine birds and butterflies, and is probably best between half of June and the whole month of July when the meadows are blooming the most. Views on the snow-capped mountains are impressive, and the birding spots can be reached on a tarmac road.
