Provence: A Foretaste

Already it seems a long time and far away from the Lesser Nighthawks, Brown-crested Flycatchers, and White-winged Doves that serenaded yesterday mornings’ 4:30 departure from Tucson. Sure, I miss ‘em already, but it’s hard to be despondent while I’m watching Common Swifts and listening to Black Redstarts and Common Greenfinches start their evening carol.

Common city birds, of course, and species we’ll all be familiar enough with at the end of our ten days together. But some incidental scouting today–a short visit to Peau de Meau in the noontime heat, an evening drive through the northern Camargue–also turned up some of the “fancies” for which Mediterranean France is famous.

I didn’t have much hope of seeing anything but Black Kites and Black-billed Magpies out at PdeM in the heat. Nice surprise indeed, then, to see three European Rollers, two of them together and decidedly “couply,” giving hope that they’ll still be there when our WINGS group’s visit later in the week. No bustards or sandgrouse, unfortunately, but there was a pair of Stone-curlews quite close to the parking lot, giving excellent views as they strode between heat waves.

Lunch at the Hotel Crau was excellent as ever, so I made reservations for the group for later in the week. Then to Arles, and then out to Chassagne and the Mas d’Agon to see what was around. There were two European Bee-eaters at Ste-Cecilie, and the big pool just north of Mas d’Agon had the usual (the usual!) Whiskered Terns, Great Crested Grebes, and Purple Herons. Common Cuckoos were singing, audible even above the Common Nightingales and Cetti’s Warblers, and as the evening cooled slightly, Great Reed Warblers and Zitting Cisticolas once again began to reflect visible light. (Best views ever of one of the cisticolas, in fact, once I figured out where its favored perches were.)

An hour on the “new” observation tower at the southern end of the Mas d’Agon road was great for a big slouch–no benches, just railings to lean against. I’d never spent that much time up there, and was impressed this evening, with fly-by Squacco Heron and White Spoonbill, more than a hundred Mediterranean Gulls, Black-winged Stilts–almost the whole Camargue gang.

I’ll keep updating the bird list from each day of the tour, which starts officially tomorrow evening, so check back if you want to see what we’ve been seeing. And I’ll try to find time to take another picture or two–if all these birds will just give me a moment!