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France Bretagne

Whinchat Saxicola rubetra ©Gerd Rossen http://www.digital-nature-photography.com/

The region consists of the Departments of: Cotes d`Armor, Finistere, Ile-de-Vilaine & Morbihan. The traditional Province of Brittany.

Known to the Celts as Argoat (the land in the forests); Brittany can today still seem distinct from the rest of France, with it`s own language and culture, although much of the former forests have disappeared. The region can, however, still furnish us with places as diverse as La Grande Brière (the second largest marshland in France); Cap Fréhel and Cap Vauban, and Ile d`Ouessant (possibly better than the Scillies!).

top sites

Guerand

Turn right at the roundabout just before the edge of the town down Rue de la Pigeonaire. Avoid working pans as this annoys the locals. Lots of Bluethroats, Avocets, Black-winged Stilts, etc.

La Grande Brière

100,000 acres of marshland. Drive until you see a farm track, park the car and explore. Most of the tracks lead to good birding sites. The natives are friendly! From St Joachim take the D50 south. Take 2nd right to Parc des Animaliers. Slightly formal, but excellent birding including good numbers of breeding Bluethroats (there is a charge)

Pointe de Croisic

Follow signs for Cote Sauvage and seawatch. Loads of shearwaters in August, perhaps just into September.

contributor

Roy Croucher
Northern France Wildlife Tours
(Averton, Mayenne)
nfwt@online.fr
http://www.northernfrancewildlifetours.com

useful reading

A Birdwatching Guide to Brittany

Stephanie Coghlan, Arlequin Press 2003 Paperback ?10.95
ISBN: 1900159864
Buy this book from NHBS.com

Books, CDs, etc.

For books on France as a whole and more than one region see the Fatbirder France page...

Oiseaux Marins Nicheurs de Bretagne

by B Cadiou, BIOTOPE Parth?nope 2002
ISBN: 2951037961
Buy this book from NHBS.com

clubs

Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux en Bretagne

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/lpo.bretagne/associationlpo.htm
Pour mettre fin au massacre des macareux moines en Bretagne, des hommes et des femmes ont agit en créant la Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux. C`était en 1912. Ces précurseurs ont fait du Macareux moine ( le logo de la LPO) un symbole de la protection de la nature...

Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux en Finistère

http://lpo29.free.fr/
Contactez-nous : finistere@lpo.fr includes: Liste des oiseaux observés en Finistère etc.

Société pour l`Etude et la protection de la nature en Bretagne

http://www.bretagne-vivante.asso.fr/
Bretagne Vivante - 186, rue Anatole France - BP 63121 - 29231 Brest cedex 3 Mis à jour le 07/05/2004

reserves

The Brière Regional Nature Park

http://www.parcs-naturels-regionaux.tm.fr/fr/decouvrir/parcs.asp?op=parcs-identite&id=6
The progressive desertion of the marshes throughout the 20th century has helped let the reed beds extend to take over natural prairies and bodies of water. Very extensive in the northern half, they have now become the dominant feature of the Briéron countryside: this invasive vegetation is composed essentially of reeds and sedges...

trip reports

Travelling Birder
http://www.travellingbirder.com
The Travellingbirder.com birding trip report search engine guides you to 7,000+ birding trip reports on the Internet. You can search for trip reports from a specific country and time of year. Not all these reports are in English. So, if you can’t find the trip report you want on this Fatbirder page… give them a try!

1998 [October] - Roberto Garavaglia & Matteo Lausetti - Brittany

http://www.ebnitalia.it/trips/trip09.htm
Brittany is the north-westernmost tip of France, protruding into the Atlantic Ocean and the English Channel. Due to this favourable geographical position, it is a prime site for watching autumn migration of seabirds, shorebirds and land birds...

2000 [March] - Steve Bird & Phil Edmonds

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/birdseekers/brittany.htm
As we docked we found Rock Pipit and White Wagtail. It then took us two hours to drive down to the woods near Rennes. There were some heavy showers en-route but bright sunning gaps looked promising. As soon as we arrived at our site we got out of the minibus and made our way into a close section of wood. Nuthatches could be heard calling and a Middle Spotted Woodpecker was heard but not seen...

2000 [October] - Gerard Joannes

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/gerard.joannes/cadrvoyages_gb.htm
Ornithological sites - As with the touristic sites, the places below have been classified geographically from the East to the West...

2002 [April] - Gerard Joannes - Morbihan

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/gerard.joannes/cadrvoyages_gb.htm
I stayed in the Gulf of Morbihan from 6 to 17 April 2002. Each day, half a day was dedicated to thalassotherapy, the other half to exploring the region and particularly its ornithological resources. I thoroughly enjoyed both activities...

2002 [September] - Jason Smart

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/france/brittany2/mousterlin-aug2002.htm
This was not meant to be a birding holiday. I let my wife choose the place and just tagged along meekly (No, dear, this is your break: I`m honestly not bothered about the birds.) Unwittingly, she picked somewhere right on the doorstep of a nature reserve...

2004 [June] - Geoff Dicker

http://www.surfbirds.com/mb/trips/france-gd-0704.html
May this year saw me in France again for another family holiday. We stayed in a rented house in the village of Conquereuil near to Redon. As it was relatively near to le Gâvre forest I made about four early morning trips to this location...

local guides

Birding Pal

http://www.birdingpal.org/France.htm
Local birders willing to show visiting birders around their area...

Northern France Wildlife Tours

http://www.northernfrancewildlifetours.com
Northern France Wildlife Tours Ltd, based in Averton, Mayenne, was born when Roy and Shirley Croucher realised that breeding Black Woodpeckers, Little Bustards and White Storks were well worth stopping for. When they found country lanes lined with orchids and cowslips, over which danced Swallowtail and Clouded Yellow Butterflies and Hummingbird Hawk Moths, they were convinced!

places to stay

Place de L`Eglise

http://www.northernfrancewildlifetours.com/about.htm
Place de L`Eglise is a 12th century house with a fascinating history. It rests in the centre of the peaceful agricultural village of Averton in Mayenne and has been sympathetically refurbished to the highest standard. The base of your wildlife holiday will be our home where you will find peace and comfort during your stay.

mailing lists

Bretagne

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/obsbzh/
To post to list:obsbzh@yahoogroupes.fr
List contact:Emmanuel Chabot - emchabot@yahoo.fr
To subscribe to list:obsbzh-subscribe@yahoogroupes.fr
Discussion group for local observations, birds andnature in Brittany (French). Members: 215. Archives on-line: ~ 3000 messages. [Most members of Bretagne Vivante (SEPNB) are on this list. There you may ask for an English-speaking birder guide, or any question about watching birds all around the country.]

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