Nature Notes

Spring and summer in Normandy are synonymous with storks following the great success of the re-introduction programme in recent years, and we've had a lot of pleasure observing the nesting pairs near Crevecoeur and in the general area up towards the coast. This week we saw a particularly handsome individual on one of the marshy fields just south of Cabourg.

Hoopoes have been a major addition to the local bird life in the past four or five years, and they appear to be spreading north and populating the area around the Pays d'Auge. Friends reported seeing hoopoes several years ago around Fervaques, and we saw one individual in the Mesnil Germain area around five years ago. In the past three or four years there has been a breeding pair quite close to us, and this week we saw what appeared to be a young hoopoe feeding on a grassy clearing, further evidence of successful breeding in the area.