French nature reserves (1 Viewer)

As I'm quite new to birdwatching, I'm looking to visit French nature reserves but I'm having difficulty finding the French version of places such as Martin Mere and Leighton Moss (sites run by English organisations such as the RSPB and the WWT).

I've found one called 'Les Sept Iles' off the Brittany coast that you can observe on a boat tour but everything else I've found has been about walks you can do to view birds, rather than protected sites you can visit with different habitats, feeders, a cafe/shop etc.

I bought a book 'Where to watch birds: France', but it mostly details walks, the majority of which require a car (and I'm a non driver).

Does anyone have any recommendations, be they reserves or useful sites? It can be anywhere in France (being from Liverpool there are multiple destinations served by low-cost airlines), so all suggestions are welcome!

Hi 28vanelli

Have you looked in Opus, you might find something there that suits you

D

That's a great start - as I say I'm not experienced enough to want to go after a particular bird or rarity, I'm just looking for reserves where I can see a good assortment of birds as part of a French holiday.

Sort of like shooting fish in a barrel, except with birds instead of fish.
And shooting with a camera, not a gun.

France is a difficult place to find reserves similar to Britain, it really is mostly out in the big field, and public transport to such places is incredibly limited. Some places I've heard of (but never been to) that may offer what you're looking for include the Camargue (of course!) and La Marquenterrehttp://www.baiedesomme.fr/parc-du-marquenterre-en-baie-de-somme-parc-ornithologique-oiseaux-migrateurs-animation-et-voyage-nature--fre3.html

As Nick says France does not have the range of reserves in the way that the UK does. Not surprisingly most of the good bird areas are away from the cities and therefore difficult (if not impossible) to reach by public transport. I should know - I don't have a car (a car is a liability rather than an asset in Paris)!

One option if you want to include Paris on your trip would be Fontainebleau. It's south of Paris and can be reached by train from Paris; not sure of the journey time but probably less than an hour - it's commuting distance. From the station you can walk to the forest where, with some luck, you can find six varieties of woodpecker, including Black Woodpecker, plus plenty of other woodland species. Best time for that would be early spring.

In Paris itself there are the two Bois - the Bois de Boulogne and the Bois de Vincennes. Both are mixed woodlands with open park-type spaces and lakes. Neither are as good as Fontainebleau but they do contain Crested Tits and Short-toed Treecreepers. Both are easily accessed by the Metro. They should be visited early morning though, as they tend to fill up with dog-walkers and joggers ad nauseam after about 10:00.

Hope this helps.

David

Just reading this on here , regarding Parc du Marquenterre

Reduced price for members of nature conservation associations, students, unemployed and disabled people (exclusively on presentation of proof)

Click to expand...

http://www.baiedesomme.fr/spip.php?page=equipement.activites_et_services&id_article=1060&lang=en

Does that mean if we show our RSPB cards we get in a bit cheaper?

Yes is the quick answer, they do however seem to inspect your card with suspicion. If