French wildlife and beekeeping

This summer we experienced a very long period of drought and two scorching heat waves which are probably the reason for an unusual and little known phenomenon to occur in the Vienne departement along with other parts of west and southwest France ! These were exactly the right conditions when the water warms sufficiently for the emergence of a tiny freshwater jellyfish, craspedacusta sowerbii.   They are normally only seen when they take the form of a small bell-shaped jellyfish known as a hydromedusa and float near the surface of the water but this requires a water temperature of at least 25°C and forms only one part of their interesting lifecycle. As a jellyfish they are 20–25 mm in diameter, somewhat flatter than a hemisphere, and very delicate. They have a whorl of up to 400 tentacles tightly packed around the bell margin. Hanging down from the center of the inside of the bell is a large stomach structure called a manubrium, with a mouth-opening and four frilly l...

When the LGV from Tours to Bordeaux was being constructed there were a large number of environmental impacts that had to be considered as a matter of law these days and I will go into them at a later date. Here I only want to touch upon one site, Le bocage humide de Chaunay a wetland site site in the south west of the Vienne departement of some importance. All in all at this site some 120 hectares were purchased by Réseau ferré de France, (RFF), which is the company that owns and maintains the French national railway network.  The land is comprised of moderately managed small copses and hedged fields that have been cut for hay. It’s something of an exception among the wetlands of the department. With no connection to any river an alluvial aquifer feeds directly into the pools and ditches creating large area of seasonal surface water. With a handful of man made ponds left in existence another 7 have or are being created on the 45 hectares that have been contracted to CREN, (...

Ponds in Poitou Charentes   from an article in   Living Magazine. Living in this part of France with water on demand at the turn of a tap, it’s easy to forget that as little as 20 to 25 years ago there were many people in small hamlets that only had the well to supply their needs. Pumped domestic water for many is a relatively recent phenomenon in rural France . The further we go back, the more people depended on other means to provide and store water for themselves and their livestock which included different types of ponds, troughs and containers depending on the purposes they would be required for. In turn, these often provided an important habitat for a range of species, amphibians, reptiles, insects and plants. Sadly, many have been lost for one reason or another or have been altered to satisfy our desire for ornamentation. Read the full Article here.  

Human activity has always changed the environment, and in this article in 2014 I took a quick look at an extraordinary area that since 1980 has been the first and only State Nature Reserve in the Vienne departement of France, La Réserve Naturelle du Pinail which is located in the commune of Vouneuil-sur-Vienne, (86210). The Reserve is 30 km north-east from Poitiers and 15 km south of Châtellerault, where it sits high on the plains between the river valleys of the Vienne and the Clain, at the north of the state-owned Moulière forest. The reserve is well worth a visit, especially for people with an interest in Odonata, (Dragonflies and Damselflies). CONTINUED  HERE. Chris

Not quite out of the woods yet with a sharp cold spell always possible ‘til mid March but today after all the rain the sun is finally shining, 11°C+ in the shade and life is emerging again even if perhaps only briefly taking a break from hibernation for some creatures. I have to confess that this is always a somewhat nervous time of year for me waiting to see how many of my occupied bee hives are active. Even though activity in itself is no sure sign that the colony is OK and has a good Queen it’s quite a good indication if they are taking in pollen but even now if a Queen fails before the end of March there is no chance of a naturally mated successor. Most of the hives looked good, all were active and I even managed to get my first sting of the year right on the face, not too happy about that I have to say, never a pleasant experience however much it goes with the job. Butterflies today were much as to be expected, all the common over wintering species, Brimston...

So far this has been a mild winter in France, particularly so in the west and south west. This always creates a risky situation for amphibians, especially those that are temperature sensitive when it comes to breeding such as the Common frog  that is always an early breeder. Although the Common frog, ( Rana temporaria ), is a species that isn't present in Vienne I understand from talking to people in other Departements that Common frogs started to spawn in December and there are already tadpoles to be seen. Severe cold weather is always likely here until at least the end of February and any sustained freeze will destroy spawn that is on or near the surface or in the case of shallow water that freezes completely any tadpoles. Salamanders , ( salamandra salamandra ), will also release their egg sacs or young larvae into the water any time from Autumn 'til Spring if it's mild and my pond currently has larvae in various stages of development with adult females at the waters e...