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Tag Archives: migratory birds
The First Cuckoo?
Happy Easter, Joyeuses Pâques à tout le monde. Easter this year has coincided with the clocks going forward for summertime and, I think, the first cuckoo. When I hung out of the window this morning listening to the birdsong, I … Continue reading
Posted in French life, Nature
Tagged birds' eggs, birdsong, brood parasites, cuckoo, first cuckoo, migratory birds, spring, summertime, SW France
14 Comments
Where Have All the Small Birds Gone?
Yesterday, we stopped by our retired farmer neighbour’s place for a chat. We remarked that it would be only a matter of weeks before the cuckoo, the first of the migratory birds, arrives. We love hearing that piping sound, which … Continue reading
Posted in Nature, Weather
Tagged birdlife, birdsong, climate, cuckoo, frost, migratory birds, nightingale, rainfall, SW France, swallow, Weather
15 Comments
Countless May Holidays and SW France Weather April 2015
May in France is a month when you can’t move for public holidays. There’s one a week: two historical and two religious. Then the next one isn’t until 14th July, la fête nationale. We were talking about it at … Continue reading
Hoopoes and SW France Weather April 2014
Some of our summer visitors are quite exotic. The golden orioles are rarely seen, except as flashes of yellow and black in the treetops, but they make their presence known with parrot-like caws and whistles. The hoopoes are distinguished by … Continue reading
Posted in Nature, Weather
Tagged frost, golden oriole, hoopoe, migratory birds, rainfall, Saints de Glace, SW France, SW France weather
13 Comments
Nightingales in Southwest France
I heard the first nightingale of the year on Wednesday. Other people say they have been around for a couple of weeks but they seem to arrive later and later chez nous in recent years. The unmistakable sliding, virtuoso … Continue reading
Seven Signs of Spring in SW France
Spring has taken a long time to arrive this year. Everything is coming out very late and the weather – up till this weekend – has generally been cooler than normal. However, we saw incontrovertible signs that spring is here … Continue reading
Posted in French life, Gardening, Nature
Tagged Choeur de Parisot, cuckoo, hoopoe, migratory birds, nightingale, spring, spring flowers, SW France, swimming pool
11 Comments
Signs of spring
The signs of spring are tentatively appearing, despite the cold and gloomy winter and today’s near-gale force winds and driving rain. Late though they are this year, cowslips now carpet the fields and there are vibrant patches of violets in … Continue reading
Posted in French life, Nature, Weather
Tagged blogs about France, countryside, France, migratory birds, nature, rural life, spring
4 Comments
