I went to visit the Michel Brosselin reserve in Saint Denis du Payré!

07 August 2021

At the heart of the marshland, the orchestra is playing a symphony that echoes all around us, and the musicians are the birds. They set the tone, we are simply guests in their kingdom now. We see why fans of birdwatching enjoy coming to this area of France, the largest wetland on the Atlantic coast.

The Michel Brosselin National Nature Reserve is a popular place with birds

The Marais poitevin Regional Natural Park boasts a great number of birdwatching reserves that are open to the public. The Michel Brosselin reserve in Saint-Denis-du-Payré covers 207 hectares and is a great place for birdwatching, while respecting the natural environment and not disturbing the birds. The observatory is opposite a vast area of water that is very popular with waders and ducks, among others. Every year, in autumn and spring, the migratory birds begin their long voyage. The reserve is a chosen destination for wintering birds (such as the common crane) and birds who come here for the summer (the garganey), as well as birds just passing through the area (Eurasian spoonbill).

Different bird species observable in the Marais poitevin.

A nature guide to accompany you on your birdwatching experience

Léa the nature guide of the reserve.

The reserve can only be accessed by visitors with a prior booking and with a guide. On that particular morning, it was very cloudy and I wasn’t sure if we would see many birds. The nature guide, Léa, began with a little game: “If you were a bird, which bird would you be?” We followed her into the reserve. The site has been developed so that visitors only have one passage and are not visible, so the wildlife is not disturbed.

Once we enter the observatory, we are free to explore it as we wish and Léa is there to answer our questions, give us little challenges, and tips on how to recognise some of the species. To help us identify them, images of the birds that are commonly found in the reserve are on display for us. It is the first time I had seen so many birds, and that I could actually recognise them, put a name to them! I saw a white stork, a pied avocet with its long beak curved up at the tip, the aptly named Eurasian spoonbill which can also be recognised by its beak, a black-tailed godwit, little egrets with their recognisable strand of feathers, a black-winged stilt, a gull and even ducks such as the shelduck and common shelduck with their eye-catching colours. I would like to start making a list and come back in autumn to see some of the wintering birds that come here and other birds passing through.

A dad and his son in the middle of a bird watching session.

A reserve is also like a life-size laboratory. Records, inventories, naturalist monitoring and nesting monitoring are all carried out here to assess how effective the various actions are. As we enter the site, we are watched by a herd of cows. In this laboratory, they also work on maintaining the balance between preserving biodiversity and maintaining the extensive breeding practices on the reserve’s meadows.

Did you know? This reserve was named after its founder, Michel Brosselin, who was an environmental activist in the 60s-70s. He was a leader in the movement for protecting nature in France. This symbolic name sets the tone, confirming that nature and birds in particular are at home here, in their very own unspoilt haven of peace.

And you, if you were a bird, which bird would you be?

Find out more:

www.reservenaturelle-saintdenisdupayre.fr

To find out about the other observation sites and the main species of bird found in the Marais Poitevin.