Magic Mushrooms!

A few weeks ago I spent a whole afternoon photographing mushrooms that had sprouted overnight following a few days of rain. There are said to be over 3000 different types of mushroom in France and although I've only captured a tiny fraction of these there are many types I've never seen before … so many different shapes, colours and sizes!

Mushrooms can sprout here at just about any time between March – November and more often than not after wet weather. Only a few of the many types are edible and although it was a plan to gather some to fry up and accompany a choice piece of steak for my tea, after being totally confused by the pictures of what you can eat, what folk say you can eat and what I'm actually seeing, I've decided not to risk a pricey trip to Montmorillon A & E and to stick to 500g box of button champignons from Aldi!

Maybe next year I'll get my wicker basket out, and yes it does have to be a wicker basket! Such is the interest in gathering edible mushrooms here that every region, department and local commune in France have set down rules to guide the would be fungi forager. The following is more or less standard when setting out -

Mushrooms must be a certain size before being picked so that they have a chance to release their spores Tools of any sort are forbidden with the exception of knives A knife must be used to cut the stem so as not to damage the mycelia (underground bit!) Mushrooms must be carried in a wicker basket to let the spores fall out and help propagation

Typical French pragmatic quirkiness! On the darker side it's thought on average 30 people die every year from consuming dangerous mushrooms (mainly due to the infamous death cap mushroom)

No idea whether any of the mushroom pics here are edible or dangerous and I'm hoping some bright fungus lover will help me out and save me the time of tagging these pics!

Last but not least, I stumbled upon this monster (below) whilst walking in a field. It's a Giant Puffball and most definitely edible. I was so intrigued by this specimen that I did pick it (no doubt violating several local byelaws!) and carried it home, a feat in itself because it was the size of a football!

In the end this beast remained uncooked because when sliced open it was a bit yellowish inside, not a good sign - shame, they're supposed to be quite tasty fried in batter!

If you're in France and not sure whether a mushroom you've picked is edible, take it along to any pharmacy - they're all trained to identify the good and the deadly!

Valley of the Monkeys & Autumn Reflections

One of my twin daughter's Sophie was over here a few weeks back for a good 'chill out' 2 weeks and on the recommendation of a friend of a friend we took a trip out to a nearby animal sanctuary called La Valle des Singes (Valley of Monkeys).

It was a good recommendatioon! Unlike many animal parks & zoos I've wandered through, La Valle des Singes is a refreshingly 'un-stage managed' and friendly reserve (and no I'm not on their payroll!), with a vast area of land in which monkeys of many species roam free in the trees. Ok it's not an all singing all dancing safari park ... its just monkeys, but to see so many of our closest relatives (sorry bruv!) swinging across the branches was just brilliant and if you're ever in the area I'd highly recommend a visit.

Photographer's dream of course and although an unseasonal downpour cut short our visit here are a few 'monkey pics' for you to enjoy ....my daughter would know all of the correct names for these but I think we have some Capuchins, Chimpanzees & Lemurs here

I took a few more and the complete gallery will be available to view on Flickr just as soon as I get around to uploading it!

Meanwhile, and bang up to date we seem to have moved into the month of Octobre! How did that happen then? Bet you can't wait for my first weekly bird report from still sunny mid west France, well don't get too excited , all in good time .... it still feels like high Summer here (25c today) but Autumn is definitely upon us, that grandest of all seasons ... regeneration time, nature going to sleep, casting off this year and building for next!

I've had a wonderful Summer for all sorts of reasons but I do love Autumn. Some idiot once suggested that Autumn is just about things dying off and that it suited my general aptitude ... we parted company soon after said suggestion! So, for all that lament the passing of another Summer, here are a few images of  early Autumn in my neck of the woods.



Wonderful strong colours .... are we ruddy for next year?

Bird Report Aug / Sept

Bird Report Aug / Sept - In and around La Macherie.

This is the first of my weekly round up of bird sightings and seeing as its my first and this is a brand new blog I'll extend this one to include the highlights over the past month or so.

August was predictably hot & humid in this part of France and not the most conducive of months anywhere for birdwatching, certainly in the early weeks, with little or no passage to speak of it's a case of catching up on resident breeding birds. As is the case everywhere in Summer birdsong diminishes and our feathered friends become rather elusive as they get on with the business of bringing young ones into the world. Birds of note around here were a surprise discovery of breeding Purple Herons at a small lake just outside Montmorillon where I had a maximum of 6 alongside some 40 pairs of Grey Heron and attendant Little Egrets, Continental Cormorants and at least 2 pairs of Great White Egrets – a species that is rapidly expanding its range Westwards in Europe. At the same location 4 Stone Curlews flew over the lake and were later heard in nearby fields.

On the passerine front (that's those small birds that annoyingly disappear into the nearest tree, hedge or bit of deep grass before you can even lift your binoculars!) … a single Hawfinch in the village was a good record, but disappointing numbers of Serins which seemed to disappear completely. Stonechats have been present in good numbers but rather less abundant have been the related Redstart, Spotted & Pied Flyctachers with only occasional records in the month. On the warbler front Chiff Chaffs, Blackcaps, Nightingales & Whitethroats in abundance. Surprisingly not recorded a single Willow Warbler though!

Going slightly larger, Golden Orioles have brightened up my days with their dashing colour and weird song & I reckon there are about a dozen pairs in and around the village, even had a couple in the garden! Both Great Spotted & Green Woodpecker are very common around here, as are Nuthatches and although less visible Lesser Spotted and Middle Spotted are both present in smaller numbers. Red Backed Shrikes, became visible mid month with maybe half a dozen pairs in and around the village. Hoopoe's crop up just about anywhere and there are at least 2 pairs nesting somewhere in the village.

On the bird of prey front, very disappointing year for Hobby's so far with only 3 records. A couple of sightings of Honey Buzzard early in the month suggest a breeding presence whilst Common Buzzards are as ever abundant. Montagues Harrier, Goshawk & Booted Eagle were all elusive during the month but certainly present and all breed around here.

August 24^th was my last Swift record and in the same week Common & Green Sandpipers begin to crop up on local wetland areas – evidence of early Autumn passage.

Into September then and, along with October, one of the best months to observe the annual North to South movement of birds in the Northern Hemisphere. Some places are better than others of course (East coast of England springs to mind … and this ex pat misses just that bit of the UK and at just this time of year!) but no matter where you are, if you have a pair of eyes and take even a passing interest in nature, bird movement is very visible.

Several of the region's over summering birds disappeared South during the first week in Sept including Red Backed Shrike, Turtle Dove, Hoopoe, Melodious Warbler & Purple Heron. In there wake, during the 2^nd week of the month, many passerines previously notable only for their absence began to crop up along the hedgerows such as Redstart, Spotted & Pied Flycatcher with many treks around the green lanes turning up 10ish of each. There was also a noticeable influx of Robins at the same time with their melancholy song replacing the more vibrant Blackcap as the most dominant noise in the woods!

I'd hoped to squeeze a trip to the Auvergne, a well known raptor migration hotspot, during the month but social and car issues intervened, so have had to content myself with catching what birds of prey decide to float southwards over La Macherie. Sure I'd have had greater numbers up in the mountains but the 14^th of Sept saw 3 Honey Buzzards, 2 Red Kites, 2 Booted Eagles, 2 Immature Hen Harriers, 1 Merlin, 1 Short Toed Eagle and 2 Black Storks over the village with a couple more Honey Buzzard and single Booted & Short Toed Eagles on the 16^th. A single Marsh Harrier flew south over the village on the 20^th and a pair of the same species did likewise on the 22^nd. On the 26^th my mate Mark, who's much better on raptor identification than me, popped over for a few days and we had a wandering male Hen Harrier on the Etang de Beauvoir plus an Osprey at the same location, another splendid male Hen Harrier on the Camp de Militaire, near Montmorillon on the 27^th and at the same location we had Merlin plus a Short Toed Eagle. All in all, not a bad haul for a rural location in the middle of France!

Apart from birds of prey, other September highlights included 45 White Storks south over the village on the 7^th, a migrant Nightjar nr Saulge on the 24^th , a late Whinchat on the 24^th, at least 6 Tree Pipits on the 26^th along with a posssible Little Crake several singing Chiff Chaffs, Willow Warblers & 2 Whitethroats and a Yellow Wagtail (all at Etang de Beavoir). Swallows gave been passing overhead and making their way south all month with about 550 over the barn in 3 hours on the 14^th.  There was a noticeable influx of Woodlarks on the 16th with about 20 seen in nearby fields that day plus a  wonderful flock of 8 Blue Headed Wagtails on the same day - unusual for around here and clearly passage birds. House Martins started to move during the last couple of weeks with a handful of resident birds still hanging around the village on the last day of the month. A single Serin in the garden on the 29^th was spotted my my friend Mark who also heard a Stone Curlew the previous evening whilst he was watering the plants in the garden!

Last day of the month (30^th ) brought some goodies – a male Redstart, my first Black Woodpecker (sunning itself on the top of a dead tree!), another Honey Buzzard south, 3 Whinchats, 10 Woodlarks and several Blackcaps and Chiff Chaffs still holding on in this glorious, if slightly unseasonal 30c heat!

Wow that was a lot of words but hopefully of interest to some, from now on I'll be updating on a weekly basis and as I finish this off its already Oct 2^nd and I can safely say that if the first 2 days of the month is anything to go by the next report will make interesting reading!

La Chasse!

Friday afternoon and French men all over this neck of the woods are clocking off early. Are France playing at the rugby world cup? Yet another public holiday w/e shutdown?

Nope, neither of these, something much more 'basic instinct' – it's the hunting season (La Chasse) and from now until March the countryside will resound with the sound of barking dogs, beasts in flight & shotgun blasts!

One article I read on the subject describes 'La Chasse' as less of a weekend pursuit and more of a 'genetic obsession' for many Frenchmen (as far as I can gather 'les madames' are either disinterested or not invited!)

Vast stretches of the French countryside and especially certain favoured wooded areas are 'off limits' at this time of the year, and although I'm not averse to hopping the occasional fence in pursuit of a mysterious bird call or to get a good shot (photographic I mean!), yours truly will NOT be risking a round of lead in my backside and straying into the sights of blood thirsty Frenchmen with guns!

I have it on good opinion that the underlying aim of these highly organized forays into the woods is to 'cleanse' the countryside and control the numbers of wild boar, deer, hare, rabbit and the like – fair enough, all those animals can do a lot of damage to the land if unchecked ( witness the damage to native forests in Scotland a few years ago by unchecked numbers of red deer), but I've also been told that anything on 4 legs or 2 if it has feathers on it, is fair game and although the hunt is supposed to be regulated, that means very little when the vast majority of hunting takes place in rural areas where the word regulation looses everything in translation!

Where do I stand on La Chasse? Hey look, I love this country and there's nothing worse than foreign residents taking pot shots (pun very much intended!) at local traditions. It's very much an accepted part of life here and there's no anti hunting lobby at all. I think the whole 'man hunting beast' thing is instinctual and has its place still in the 21^st Century – at least it hasn't warped into a class issue and a political hot potato like it has in the UK. Having said that – I see one red kite fall out of the sky following 'un coup de feu' and I'll be hopping over that fence en route to expressing some good old English outrage!

Somtimes I watch the skies for hours!

Sometimes I stare at the sky for hours on end; seems like a completely mad thing to do but amongst other things I'm a 'birder', and at this time of the year some, in fact most of our feathered friends are on the move in one way or another, and 'birders' like me like to keep our heads up!

I say 'birder' to distinguish myself from the other 2 types of so called birdwatchers – now I'm not being dismissive here, each to their own and all that but it grates a little when a common response I get upon mentioning that I'm a birdwatcher is 'oh a twitcher eh?' Time for some definitions!

Twitchers – Interested in birds - yes, but only in terms of ticking them off. A bone fide 'twitcher' would think nothing of upping sticks and travelling the length and breadth of the country just to see and then 'tick off' the latest rarity to flutter into their country.

Part time enthusiasts – Bird table in the garden and binoculars from the conservatory with the occasional trip out the their local RSPB reserve of a Sunday.

Birders – Totally in to birds. Slightly mad breed, fascinated by what birds are occurring on their patch and why.

All good folk and birds need the attention of as many fanatics, however mad, as possible in order to thrive and thus continue to thrill us.

OK, OK, enough already…. back to the skies! The past couple of weeks I've been fairly sedentary in and around La Macherie, the weather has been fine and the skies full of birds moving South, mainly swallows ans house martins but also several birds of prey including Red Kite, Booted & Short Toes Eagle and Honey Buzzard - any like minded birders will doubtless find the first of my weekly bird reports quite interesting! For those with more of a passing interest here are a few recent 'upward' shots'

Ok from the top - Honey Buzzard, to be honest I don't remember much about this bird, just realised it was a buzzard that didn't look quite right and started clicking! It was only later when I was editing my pics that I thought WOWSER - that's a definite Honey Buzzard!

Middle 2 - Pretty sure these are Hen Harriers, they were messing about and my guess it that they're immatures dispersing from a nest site somewhere.

Bottom left - Ah! Confusion time - was convinced at the time this was a migrating Booted Eagle but the carpal patches give it away - its a pale phase Common Buzzard!

Bottom right - so lucky on this one ... thats a Black Stork and one of a pair that I just happened to be flying South as I was looking up. Fair distance up like, as are most of these travellers - hence the need to crop these pics, however a good birding lesson in always keeping an eye on the skies!

Autumn is on its way!

The French countryside was just bursting out into Spring when I arrived in this neck of the woods, now the Summer is all but gone and the leaves are turning ... its taken me that long to get this blog up and running! Well better late than never, and I'm very often late ... spend too much time looking at things!

I'm new to blogging so this is likely to be a slightly sloppy start but I'm doing this as much for myself as for any other mad fool who might choose to take an interest in my travelling experiences. Read my bio if you really do have nothing else to do but in a nutshell I'm a self confessed wildlife, photography & music lover and have taken early retirement (courtesy of the good ole NHS) so that I can dwell a bit on these pleasures before I'm too old to pursue them .... I actually enjoyed working but sometimes life throws up opportunities and being a bit of chancer I took this one!

Hope you enjoy the blog, hope it inspires  ... if its still going in 6 months time then I'll be enjoying it too!