I've never seen a squirrel in the 11 years we have lived here in Finisterre. According to the locals there are none around where I live.
We have loads of squirrels here too. They scamper over the lawn (ex-lawn after dogs digging) to get at bird food and drive our cats crazy, they never seem to get them. They are a delight to watch. I love it when the redstarts get angry when they arrive, but how the robins more or less ignore them. Quite a show often.
There should be plenty of Squirrels where you are Kenneth, they are generally widespread throughout, even at some altitude. They behave completely differently here to Reds in the UK.
You could always go to Reims. http://champagne-ardenne.france3.fr/2013/03/31/la-ville-de-reims-va-proceder-un-lacher-d-ecureuils-226297.html
More in English:
http://wildlifeinfrance.com/red-squirrel-sciurus-vulgaris-ecureuil-roux-france.html
Chris
Well, I have to say we're extremely Lucky as these particular squirrels live in the cedar trees in our side garden. They're not daft - there's a beech tree in between the cedars!
Our swallows tend to bugger off once the nesting season's over (they don't even leave a tip). Our first year here, we were in a gite up near St Dizier when it was migration time and spent about three hours watching the swallows gathering (clearly gangs from various different communes), doing the swooping, getting into their formations and finally going - with what was almost like a flypast at the end! It was an amazing sight (and sound) and one we feel privileged to have been able to see.
When "our" swallows come back one comes ahead to check that the accommodation's still available then they all start coming in - some to the garages, some Under the terrace and some to the "room" at the back which we have no idea is there for. Last year they arrived dead on 1 April. My wife came rushing in shouting "they're here! they're here! Open the doors!" And oddly enough I knew exactly who she was talking about!
dear Chris Luck,
Most of my working life I have been with the largest steel group in the world. Unfortunately steelmaking places a tremendous burden on the environment for which I feel partly responsible. There is one project at Dunkerque port which has tried to minimise the impact of our activities in the area - here is the link; www.dunkerque-port.fr/index.php?cmpref=13125&lang=fr
thank you Jane Williamson and David Mollett for mentioning the red squirrels - so far we have not seen any in this area and the last time I saw them in the wild was in Kilmarnock. David, you mentioned the swallows and spring. In Autumn all the house martins gather around the house we use as a reception for the factory, clinging to the walls, covering the roof and perching on the telephone lines, all watching the acrobatic stunts of those birds too excited to sit still. It is a sure sign that summer has come to an end.
I agree with you wholeheartedly Chris - for most of my early life I was living in the urban fringe around London and it was exciting to find out how much more wildlife there was here in the Ardennes. Thank you for posting the Little Bustard video - just my luck that it has been wiped out from this area.
Can I recommend that people take a look at this and follow it through with some further research?
Perhaps even join your local Bird or Nature Association? It will open up an entirely new world.
En France mĂ©tropolitaine, 9% des mammifĂšres, 19% des reptiles, 21% des amphibiens et 27% des oiseaux nicheurs sont menacĂ©s de disparition du territoire. Tout comme 22% des poissons dâeau douce et 28% des crustacĂ©s dâeau douce. Pour la flore, 17% des espĂšces dâorchidĂ©es sont menacĂ©es.
http://www.uicn.fr/Liste-rouge-France.html
this is only the species considered to be really endangered and only a partial list without insects.
Also for Bears,wolves and lynx a useful asso. is:
Chris
Here in Southern Burgundy there is abundant wildlife.
Like the rest of France we have the red squirrels, which were all I knew when I was growing up in North Lancashire.
There are many varieties of raptors, which says much for the small mammal population. We have hares, but not many at the moment, as they move around and have chosen to move somewhere else. There are deer, foxes, but not many badgers. We sometimes see pine martens crossing the road and, of course, sanglier.
We used to see hoopoes regularly in our courtyard, but not so much now as it has been covered in pebbles.
Our best sighting has been a Golden Oriole. We were having lunch on our terrace and it flew across our line of sight and into a nearby tree. I had never seen one before, but there was no mistaking it because of its vibrant colour.
Yes, well said Chris. I have been a 'wildlife' lover since childhood having several places like Wimbledon Common, Richmond Park, Morden Hall Park and Mitcham Common so on close by with a diversity of wildlife, that then at least was amazing. Having travelled so much of the world and seeing the demise of too many species I have been all the more concerned and member of a number of groups including the Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe.
Increasingly rare species like the brown bear are down to very few. I doubt people realise, but the last known bear in France was shot by hunters in the Pyrenees (accidentally they said) as recently as 2004, previous to that one area of the western Pyrenees lost its last bear in 1991 where although they were protected, the last six were hunted and shot in just five or so years.
Wolves are listed as an endangered species and killing them is illegal under the Berne Convention that France has ratified. The largest population is in SE France, a few in the Pyrenees. The probable population size is around 100. Shepherds are claiming up to 5000 sheep a year killed by them in SE France, but ironically (surprise, surprise) one source of that information is the Daily Mail who have campaigned against their reintroduction in the Scottish Highlands. 100 wolves are barely capable of eating 1000 sheep in a year, given their preference is for smaller animals such as rabbits and small rodents, plus a few usually lame or ill deer that are more commonly available and well away from humans who they rarely attack despite the myths.
Lynx are on the increase, but that is from a handful to a larger handful. Despite stories they are so shy of us that humans rarely see them.
At least the genet is doing quite well. They raid people's chickens hereabouts occasionally which gets people uppity but nothing serious. I've seen them a few times in the forest, lovely little things.
Anyway, those of us who are interested in the flora and fauna often shy away from carnivores but they are an important part of the ecology and there is so much BS said and written about them that they remain under serious threat. I hope they all recover in my few remaining years.
Many Brits move to France either part time or full time having perhaps lived in an urban environment with limited contact with the countryside or wildlife. Suddenly seeing Buzzards, kestrels and perhaps other birds of prey on a more or less daily basis can be a bit of a surprise and rather impressive. Equally so with the different species of snakes, lizards, newts, frogs, insects, mammals and birds that will never have been seen before.
Even people like myself that moved to France from the countryside in the UK, (Welsh borders),would find the scale of space and the apparent abundance of some species exciting. I was completely at sea for years especially as it was BI (Before internet), before digital cameras etc... strewth, it's hard to imagine now what life was like then. When I found my first Viperine snake I told the farmer up the lane when I saw him hoping he would enlighten me and got my first proper insight into real French culture..
"Did I manage to kill it?" errr, no, why? "It was a snake, all snakes should be killed"
That aside because that attitude is a subject in its own right, France is indeed species rich with both resident species, migratory species and flyovers, but however much people don't want to hear it the decline has been massive with some species and some habitats but unless a person has been involved or studied the subject a little this will not be evident. It's rather like a poor person meeting someone with 50 grand and thinking them rich without realising that the person previously had 5 million and had lost it.
This is one of many species where the struggle and effort is intense and all that is being achieved is that the decline has been halted in a few places with the goodwill of a relative handful of small farmers.
http://wildlifeinfrance.com/little-bustard-tetrax-tetrax-outarde-canepetiere-in-france.html
If all these wonderful species are to be enjoyed by future generations conservation must be given more support in France.
Chris
For geographic, climatic and historic reasons France has more species than the UK, sort of self evident when you stop and think about but as someone that works in this field in France and has done for many years it saddens, indeed often depresses me to witness the destruction of habitats and corresponding declines including increasingly local extinctions of so many species. Plus of course the deliberate and wanton attacks on protected species.
Chris
We have much the same as people are saying overall here, except that nobody has mentioned the hoopoes with their strange crests, we had a Bonetti's eagle for a while this year, a bit north of its normal range. Our field has a deer run through it. In the frost we see the tracks, on a good moonlight night like now with full moon we can often see groups of at least two of the three species hereabouts. Wild board occasionally 'visit', then there are the genets, raccoons and many badgers we see.
just reread what I wrote - I only pick up the normal lizards, regardless of size, but I don't touch the bright green ones that are usually about 30 cm long :-O
and for the record, I've never jumped so hign when the grass snake took off from under me (I was clearing brambles on a nice warm south facing slope). We also had a scary moment on a training ride with my old cycling club when a viper decided to cross the road in the middle of the peleton - fortunately no-one fell off in the panic!
Had a scorpion in my shoe in italy, habit meant that I tapped the shoe in the morning and out fell the scorpion :-O
not for squeamish!
great picture!
grass snakes - nearly trod on one that measured well over a metre, vipers, lizards - lost count of the number I've rescued from the cats, especially the big green ones that bite - don't go near them, hornets the size of bats...
Iâve not yet moved to France but on the subject of different wildlife here we have these, parakeets which are now found all over south and south west London. This was taken in my garden a few days back.
Just the red squirrels and various bird types - not that we can identify them all as we don't have binoculars. My wife calls our house "the house of the perfect eaves" because once the nesting season begins it's full of various sorts. The woodpigeons were very miffed last year to return to "their" nest under the eaves at the far end of the house only to find that a family of chaffinches had already moved in.
We have swallows who come back every year and take over the courtyard and garage - and that's when we know spring is really here!
Just had a Fire Salamander S. salamandra stalk me on the patio 
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