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France Champagne-ardenne

(visit this page on fatfisherman.com)
(visit this page on fatphotographer.net)

Great-spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major �Gerd Rossen http://www.digital-nature-photography.com/

The region consists of the Departments of: Ardennes, Aube, Marne & Haute-Marne. The traditional Provinces of: Champagne, Lorraine & Burgundy.

The countryside of this department is very variable, and has areas with distinct character. Most notable is the high clay plateau forming the watershed between the Marne and the Seine rivers. In this flat and wet area three very large artificial lakes have been created for the purpose of regulating flow in the Marne and Seine rivers. This means that they progressively dry out from late spring onwards and are at their lowest in November.

Famous for their Catfish and Carp fishery, the lakes also provide a home for vast numbers of birds, at all times of the year. They are the Lacs du Der/Chantecoq, Amance, and Foret d'Orient, famous for their populations of migrating Cranes and as a winter home for White Tailed Eagles. Then there is the bocage country to the North and East of the region, with small fields, mature hedges, and some very unintensive farming in little pockets, as well as the Meuse and Sedan valleys and forrests. The whole region always repays a close look wherever the travelling naturalist stops.

Top Sites

Chooz & Montherme

Satellite View
There is an excellent reserve in a bend in the Meuse River south of Givet [where there is a nuclear power station] which is good for Ospreys, Black-necked Grebe etc. The wooded hills West of there are good for Black Woodpecker, among other things. Nearby, there is a fascinating botanical reserve comprising a raised acid bog high in the hills above Montherme.

Forest du Der

Satellite View
The Forest du Der near Allichamps has Black and Middle-spotted Woodpecker, as also does the woodland North of the lovely village of Trois Fontaines, North of St Dizier.

La Horre lake

Satellite View
La Horre lake is near to (West) the Lac du Der and has breeding Purple Heron and Spotted Crake. The woods North of the Forest Orient lake around the Maison de Foret has flocks of tens of Hawfinch and wintering Firecrest, too.

Lac de la For�t D'Orient and Lac du Der-Chantecoq

Satellite View
The lakes in Champagne are Well known for cranes on migration and over-wintering, local speciality also include WT Eagle, RL Buzzard and Bean Goose... Also has some very good woodlands in the area.

Maubeuge area

Satellite View
To the South of the town of Maubeuge in the west is some very very good birding in the woods, streams and hedges which saw such fierce fighting towards the end of the second world war. It also contains remnants of the Maginot Line. The small villages of Wallers-Trelon, Solre le Chateau, and the Val Joly lake near Willies will all repay a quiet ramble along the lanes or into the woods with a satisfying list of birds such as Red-backed Shrike, Honey Buzzard, Wood Warbler, Black and Red Kite, Corncrake and breeding Fieldfare, and maybe even Bonelli's Eagle.

Presque'Ile de Champaubert Park

Satellite View
At Lac du Der/Chantecoq, the park around the old Church at Presque'Ile de Champaubert is a must see, for raptors and rarer waterfowl - including 150 Smew in winter.

Contributor

Peter Wells
p.wells@zen.co.uk

Useful Reading

Books, CDs, etc.

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

Organisations

LPO Champagne-Ardenne

Website

Aider les oiseaux en hiver, favoriser leur nidification dans votre jardin, suivre la migration des Grues cendr�es, faire connaissance avec le lac du Der et les lacs Aubois, mieux conna�tre les oiseaux de Champagne Ardenne, cel� vous interesse?

Reserves

Lac du Der

Website
Satellite View
Les �tangs d'Outines et Arrigny, acquis par le Conservatoire du littoral (326 ha), font partie de la Champagne humide, r�gion naturelle comprenant de nombreux �tangs, des gravi�res et les barrages-r�servoirs du bassin de la Seine parmi lesquels le lac de Der-Chantecoq (r�servoir Marne), plus grand lac artificiel d'Europe qui se situe � 500 m�tres � l'est des �tangs...

Trip Reports

This section sponsored by:

2004 [November] - Ivan Steenkiste - Lac du Der

Report

My wife and I spent 4 days (Nov 23 - 26) at the Lac du Der to enjoy the daily coming and going of thousands of Common Cranes. Their numbers are estimated to be around 14.000 (though higher numbers up to 70.000 were seen in October). These days, the elegant birds leave their safe sleeping areas at the Lake at around 07:35 in order to fly to / find food in the surrounding fields and landscapes. In the evening, they come back to the lake as of 15:30 in big V-shapes or long lines. Their approach can be heard from very far and when one is posted on the dike at the West side, superb pictures can be made, filled with an orange coloured sky.

2009 [March] - Steve Marshall

Report

...now clear blue sky. Although distant, there were reasonable numbers of Bewick�s Swan, Shelduck and Lapwing, 2 Great White Egrets and, to top it all off, 9 Wild Boar visible through the scope as they island hopped by swimming and wading until reaching the western shore...

Peter Wells - Lac du Der

Report

This page will be updated soon to tell you about my birding trips to the Lac du Der - Chantecoq area in the Champagne - Ardennes region of North-Eastern France. In the meantime, enjoy these pictures...

Guides & Tour Operators

This section sponsored by:

Birding Pal

Information

Local birders willing to show visiting birders around their area...

Forums & Mailing Lists

obs-champagne-ardenne

Mailing List
To post to list:obs-champagne-ardenne@yahoogroupes.fr
List contact:obs-champagne-ardenne-owner@yahoogroupes.fr
To subscribe to list:obs-champagne-ardenne-subscribe@yahoogroupes.fr
Observations en Champagne Ardenne. La liste obs-Champagne-Ardenne se veut �tre le rendez-vous de tous ceux qui aiment les oiseaux de la r�gion, qu`ils soient Champardennais ou non. C`est un lieu d`�changes sur tout ce qui a trait � l`oiseau libre, en particulier les observations. En ce qui concerne les esp�ces sensibles, il est demand� de ne pas donner pr�cis�ment le lieu d`observation, afin d`�viter les d�rangements, surtout en p�riode de reproduction. Cettte liste est ouverte � tous.

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