Darren Pearce
Well-known member
I have just returned from a two week family camping holiday in France. We stayed at a town called Concourson-sur-Layon, which is a small town just outside of Doue-La-Fontaine which is west of Saumur in the Pays de la Loire region. We were camped on an English run campsite
www.campingvdv.com
A lot of my birding was done taking walks in the afternoon while my family were around the pool but we did make some specific trips out to go birding.
Part one
The Ferry crossing and drive to our campsite
Bird wise the ferry crossings were uneventful. The outward journey was a night crossing so we were asleep. The first birds encountered as we approached Le Havre were Gannet's and Kittiwake's. When we reached the port I saw some Sandwich Terns through the window as we ate breakfast. But to be fair I wasn't looking too hard as we needed to push on to our final destination. The only birds of interest on the drive down were a group of White Storks in a field.
The Campsite and surrounding area
As soon as we pulled up at our campsite I could hear the purring of Turtle Dove's, which was really nice to hear considering at home I need to twitch them to get them on my year list. There were plenty of Swallows and Housemartins whizzing about overhead and Blackcaps,Goldfinches and a Robin in the trees around our pitch
Our campsite was surrounded by farmland mainly growing sunflowers, there were plenty of lane and tracks to explore. Nearby there was a meadow that the river Layon ran through, which I thought would be interesting for Butterflies and Dragonflies. Over the fortnight I went out for a few walks to see what was about.
It didn't take long to rack up a decent list. Just by walking down the road I picked up Cirl Bunting, Yellowhammer, and Corn Bunting. A small flock of Serin settled briefly in a tree. Along a hedgerow there were a pair of Melodious Warblers which was a lifer for me.Common Buzzards soared overhead and Kestrels hovered over the fields. I had crippling views of both male and female Montagu's Harriers as they hunted over the farmland. I was out one afternoon when a raptor appeared that I did not recognise. However it did not take long to ID as it was a Black Kite, which was a lifer and one of my target birds. I watched as it circled and rose until it was a speck in the distance. I walked down to the river and added Grey Wagtail
Butterflies seen were Swallowtail, which flew past so quickly by the time I'd realised they had gone,Clouded Yellow, Red Admiral, what I think were Speckled Wood (they looked different to ours, pic below confirmation would be appreciated), Gatekeeper, Large and Small White and a Brown one (pic below ID please)
I saw some Dragon and Damselflies but I did not take the time to ID them all. I did ID Common and Ruddy Darter, Southern Hawker and what I think were Willow Emerald Damselflies (pic below)
www.campingvdv.com
A lot of my birding was done taking walks in the afternoon while my family were around the pool but we did make some specific trips out to go birding.
Part one
The Ferry crossing and drive to our campsite
Bird wise the ferry crossings were uneventful. The outward journey was a night crossing so we were asleep. The first birds encountered as we approached Le Havre were Gannet's and Kittiwake's. When we reached the port I saw some Sandwich Terns through the window as we ate breakfast. But to be fair I wasn't looking too hard as we needed to push on to our final destination. The only birds of interest on the drive down were a group of White Storks in a field.
The Campsite and surrounding area
As soon as we pulled up at our campsite I could hear the purring of Turtle Dove's, which was really nice to hear considering at home I need to twitch them to get them on my year list. There were plenty of Swallows and Housemartins whizzing about overhead and Blackcaps,Goldfinches and a Robin in the trees around our pitch
Our campsite was surrounded by farmland mainly growing sunflowers, there were plenty of lane and tracks to explore. Nearby there was a meadow that the river Layon ran through, which I thought would be interesting for Butterflies and Dragonflies. Over the fortnight I went out for a few walks to see what was about.
It didn't take long to rack up a decent list. Just by walking down the road I picked up Cirl Bunting, Yellowhammer, and Corn Bunting. A small flock of Serin settled briefly in a tree. Along a hedgerow there were a pair of Melodious Warblers which was a lifer for me.Common Buzzards soared overhead and Kestrels hovered over the fields. I had crippling views of both male and female Montagu's Harriers as they hunted over the farmland. I was out one afternoon when a raptor appeared that I did not recognise. However it did not take long to ID as it was a Black Kite, which was a lifer and one of my target birds. I watched as it circled and rose until it was a speck in the distance. I walked down to the river and added Grey Wagtail
Butterflies seen were Swallowtail, which flew past so quickly by the time I'd realised they had gone,Clouded Yellow, Red Admiral, what I think were Speckled Wood (they looked different to ours, pic below confirmation would be appreciated), Gatekeeper, Large and Small White and a Brown one (pic below ID please)
I saw some Dragon and Damselflies but I did not take the time to ID them all. I did ID Common and Ruddy Darter, Southern Hawker and what I think were Willow Emerald Damselflies (pic below)
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La Brenne is one of the most wonderful places in western Europe to go birding, and my fave place in France. It's also really underdeveloped and unspoilt and attracts very few visitors, so don't tell anyone 
