Corsica 2005 bird - butterflies - dragonflies Simon Plat, Marc van der Aa Dates: 23-06-2005 till 30-06-2005 For more info, comments, questions etc please contact us.
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General information and daily log
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This is a short report of an 8 day trip to Corsica and Southern France (Camarque and Crau) from 23 till 30 June 2005, in order to find the species endemic to Corsica and other specialties. Since it is the low season this time of year when it comes to birds we decided also to concentrate on other fauna, including butterflies and dragonflies.
It took us not long to prepare for our target bird species with a good number of trip reports on the Internet and more than useful answers to some specific questions asked on the EuroBirdNet mail group. The decision to visit the Camarque and the Crau was based on the fact that Moustached Warbler (Camarque) and Lesser Kestrel, Little Bustard and Southern Grey Shrike would be new species for us.

We travelled with our own car and drove all the way from Wageningen, the Netherlands to Marseille, France, giving us the freedom to go and stop where we saw fit. From Wageningen to Marseille it is about 1200 km, which we easily drove in just over 14 hours including lots of stops en route. Costs for the Peage in France (route Nancy – Lyon and Lyon – Marseille) were € 45,-. In Marseille we took the night boat (one of the slowest crossing options), previously booked, leaving Marseille just after 08:00 p.m and docking in Propriano at 7:00 a.m. the following morning. Renting a cabin for the night made it possible for us to get a good night’s rest before we were going to start some serious birding. From Corsica we had the night boat leaving Ajaccia at 07:00 p.m. and arriving in Marseille around 7:00 a.m. Again we had our own cabin. Price for a return ticket, including car and cabin was € 365,-, which was definitely not the cheapest option. Because of our limited time, however, it was the most convenient one. Over the whole trip we drove 3500 km.
Campsites were easily found all over the island and the ones we found were all between € 10,- and € 17,- for a tent, a car and two persons.

Looking back we came to realise that 6 days on Corsica does not do justice to the beauty of the island. Not even by far. It is enough to find the endemics and should be enough to find most of the targets but we actually didn’t see more than half of the island. Which is as good a reason as any to go back some day.
The weather was nothing but great. Temperatures during the day rose to about 32 °C in the coastal areas of Corsica and up to 28 °C in the mountains. On Corsica there was virtually no wind during our visit. The Crau was hot (34 °C) but fortunately we had some wind there.
We dipped on quite a lot of species, probably due to lack of time. Most notably was the Balearic Woodchat Shrike, a species we expected to come across at least once. Another bad dip was Lammergeier, which is always difficult. In the Camarque we tried for Moustached Warbler but were equally unsuccessful.

23-06-2005

We started birding as soon as 7 minutes after departure from Wageningen around 2:30 a.m. with a Barn Owl hunting along the roadside. We decided to leave early to have a Big Day driving from Wageningen to Marseille and have enough time to enjoy some of the parking lots along the “Route de Soleil” in France. We took the route Wageningen – Venlo – Roermond – Maastricht – Luxembourgh – Nancy – Lyon – Marseille. Around 4:30 a.m. we crossed the border with Belgium and soon after that it started to dawn, allowing us to add the first common birds to our list. Before 8:00 a.m. we were in France and soon after that the first interesting species started to appear, notably Black Kite and an occasional Red Kite.
Before noon we reached Lyon and it became clear that we had more than enough time to get to Marseille for the 08:00 p.m. ferry to Corsica. The weather was great with temperatures starting to approach 30 °C. We checked a few parking lots but most of those were disappointing in terms of butterflies and dragonflies, except for one parking lot with an interesting river running behind the parking place. We were able to identify Pearly Heath, White Admiral, Purple Emperor, Scarce Swallowtail and some more common butterflies. We also found several dragonflies like Banded Demoiselle, Beautiful Demoiselle, Southern Skimmer (Orthetrum brunneum) and White-legged Damselfly.
A bit too early (around 03:00 p.m.) we arrived in Marseille where it took us over an hour and a half to arrange everything for the ferry and get in line to wait for the boarding. Nothing of interest was seen from the ferry before we found our beds for a well-earned sleep.

24-06-2005

Marc was up early (5:00 a.m.), about 2 hours before arrival and went outside to tick the first Scopoli’s Shearwaters. He was also lucky enough to see a group of Common Dolphins. About an hour later I was lucky to be just in time for the last Scopoli’s Shearwater before our arrival, this one flying along with the ferry for over 15 minutes. Only a bit later did we find our only Levantine Shearwater of the trip, also very close to the boat. While entering Propriano port the first Audouin’s Gull was a fact whilst a Shag was swimming in the harbour. Disembarking in Propriano went smooth although this resulted in a car-stuffed town for over 20 minutes. Within minutes after arrival the first flock of Black Starlings flew by.
We first checked the area south of Propriano, along the road to the airport and towards Punta di Campomoro. It wasn’t long before we found - among the more common species - a loud singing Cetti’s Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Quails (close to the airport), Bee-eaters, Corn Buntings, Sardinian Warbler, Red-backed Shrike, Cirl Bunting and a flock of Pallid Swifts. In the harbour of Portigliolo we found our second Audouin’s Gull, which, however beautiful, proved to be quite common. The first interesting butterfly was one of Europe’s largest: the beautiful Two-tailed Pasja, which proved to be common in the coastal areas. The second interesting butterfly was the most common butterfly during our stay: Cleopatra, and the third interesting butterfly was another great one: Southern White Admiral, also not uncommon. Dragonflies included Copper Demoiselle (Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis). This first impression, after only an hour on the island, was very inspiring indeed.
Around 11:00 a.m. we decided to head into the mountains to escape the oncoming heat. We drove to Zonza with several stops along the road to add Raven and Great Banded Grayling to our list. This charming butterfly was only seen in this part of the island. The scenery on the way to Col de Bavella was magnificent.

We took our time following the red route to U Cumpuleddu whilst birding. Coal Tit is very common and Great Spotted Woodpecker is easily found. During the walk we also saw two small flocks of Crossbills, one at the car park, Woodlark and European Serin. Butterflies included our first endemic (shared only with Sardinia): Corsican Heath. We also found Small Heath, Brown Argus, Small Copper and a Pale Wall Butterfly (the latter restricted to the Western Mediterranean Islands). Marc found Corsican Brook Newt (Euproctus montanus) in a small stream.
It was only at the top that I walked into our first Corsican Nuthatch, two birds chasing each other. A panicky moment since Corsican Citril Finches and Yellow-billed Chough showed up at exactly the same moment and Marc was 50 meters behind. This resulted in the first dip for Marc as the Nuthatches unfortunately disappeared, not to be found again. Crag Martin and Alpine Swift were not much of a comfort.
During our walk back we saw a few Large Tortoiseshells en Southern Commas along the road in the forest.
Around 04:00 p.m. we left the place and drove on to the East Coast to find a place to sleep. We eventually found a very nice campsite at Prunete (€ 10,-) where we had a nice swim in the Mediterranean. At dusk at least two Scops Owls started to call.

25-06-2005

We packed our things and left the campsite early. We drove to the Asco Valley, north of Corte without stopping much along the road. The road through Gorges de l’Asco is a very scenic route but we decided to drive on to the end of the road at Haut Asco for another chance of finding Corsican Nuthatch and other high elevation species. Along the way we saw a big flock of Alpine Swifts and several Crag Martins.

Haut Asco is one of the highest places to be easily reached by car. At the car park a Grey Wagtail was present and Corsican Citril Finches were easy to find. We walked the orange route and the first Corsican Nuthatch here was a heard-only bird calling from down slope. Within a few hundred meters from the car park a second bird, a male, showed very briefly before it disappeared into the crown of a pine. We continued along the trail until we reached a bridge over one of several streams. A Dipper was flying up and down this stream. Our first swallowtail on the island proved to be a Corsican Swallowtail.
After heading back to the car we decided to try for better looks of the nuthatch at the first sharp bend in the road, just down from the car park. We played the sound for a moment and within 10 minutes a female finally showed very well in the pines along the road before disappearing again.
After that we tried for Lammergeier at several spots down from the car park but without success. At one spot with lots of flowers, including a flowering blackberry, we found some interesting butterflies. Cardinal was quite common along with Silver-washed Fritillary. The widespread but charming Queen of Spain Fritillary was present and the Corsica/Sardinia endemic Corsican Fritillary was seen in small numbers. Also present were widespread species like Holly Blue, Silver-studded Blue (ssp. Corsicus) and Common Blue. We drove back through Asco Valley where we had a stop to check out a Subalpine Warbler.
By now it was well past noon and we decided to go to another spot: L’Etang de Biguglia. We arrived in the afternoon and tried to find some good birding spots. Our first Hoopoe was seen down a track along a channel in the southern part of the area where Bee-eaters were also common. The D107 follows L’Etang on the eastern side but it is quite difficult to get a good view of the lake.

Best stop was at the car park just north of La Marana with good views over the lake (bad light in the late afternoon). We found another three Audouin’s Gulls and a Sandwich Tern among the numerous Common Terns. We decided that the area was not all that inspiring and a bit crowded due to the beaches close by. We therefore left the area quickly. In order to be able to have an early morning in Cap Corse we decided to drive north for the rest of the evening. Passing Bastia was not much of a problem and we finally ended up at a campsite at Pietra. Campsite birding was pleasant with Bee-eaters, Cirl Buntings, Subalpine Warblers, Spotted Flycatcher (distinct subspecies!) and our first Nightjars, all seen or heard from the campsite, and Hoopoe and Dartford Warbler in the fields and maquis near the campsite. During the night we were again treated with a Scops-Owl calling.

26-06-2005

We began the day by checking the surroundings of the campsite and the maquis. All species were seen earlier during our vacation; we had good views of a family of Dartford Warblers. It took us less than an hour to drive to the small town of Macinaggio in the far north of Cap Corse.

We parked our car at the still desolated car park and walked across the beach where a Two-tailed Pasja showed well sitting in the sand. The trail we reached at the end of the beach was beautiful and it took not very long before our first Marmora’s Warbler was a fact. Also present were Dartfort, Subalpine and Sardinian Warbler. Cirl Bunting and Red-backed Shrike were common. The coast held Shag and another Audouin’s Gull among the numerous Yellow-legged Gulls. We took our time to walk to Santa Maria tower where we had a short break and a swim. The area held quite some butterflies including Clouded Yellow, Southern Gatekeeper (very common), Southern Grayling (surprisingly not the endemic Corsican Grayling that we haven’t been able to find at all) and a few Southern White Admirals. We walked the (shorter) inland trail (along the chapel) back to the beach where we tried for some dragonflies at the small pools bordering the beach. Red-veined Darter was common and Scarlet Dragonfly was beautiful. Also present were Black-tailed Skimmer and Norfolk Hawker. A Two-tailed Pasja that was quenching its thirst at one of the pools was very photogenic.
This excursion took us most of the morning and quite satisfied we decided to drive west to take the coastal route back down. Just for fun we drove the small and scenic D153 and D253 north to Tollare and Barcaggio. Back in Ersa we enjoyed a great lunch accompanied by yet another Two-tailed Pasja. At a certain spot in Ersa a wall full with flowering plants provided us with a sparkling spectacle of butterflies including Cleopatra and common Swallowtail. This abundance of butterflies was only top by a desolated football field with lots of flowers where we saw an estimated 2000+ Cleopatras and numerous other species amongst which Cardinal, with Silver-washed Fritillary and Swallowtail. After this intermezzo we enjoyed the very scenic and at times scary coastal route down to Saint-Florent. The combination of the ultramarine Mediterranean, steep green slopes, black beaches and charming traditional towns was breathtaking.
In the end of the afternoon we arrived in Saint-Florent and we found a camping just west of town with enough time to have another swim in the sea.

27-06-2005

This morning we had scheduled for the ‘Desert des Agriates’, west of Saint-Florent. Though not really a desert, this is apparently about the driest area on Corsica. With some difficulty we eventually found a track to Saleccia but within the first kilometre it became quite clear that this unpaved road was in too worse a condition to tackle with our conventional vehicle. We had to drive back and found another potentially interesting spot in the Ogliastro delta, 25 km west of Saint-Florent. To get to the beach and the delta we had to drive the old D81 for a few km and stop the car at a kind of a parking lot alongside the road. From this car park there was a trail leading down the slope to the beach. We had to cross two shallow rivers to get into the area. Unfortunately the birds were not that inspiring with only the common ones seen again. The butterflies and dragonflies were also not that inspiring, so we do not advice going there.
These actions gave us the feeling that we wasted our morning and we decided to do something completely different in the afternoon, so we went into the mountains again. We drove to Calvi and took the D81 passing the airport and into the ‘Foret de Bonifatu’, where the road stops at a car park with several nice hiking options.

Most people actually come to bath in the streams. An idea that inspired us and after a quick walk we found a terrific spot to chill with our feet dangling in the icy stream (definitely too cold for a complete skinny dip). Both Iberian and Copper Demoiselle were present along this stream. The roadside held both Cardinal and Silver-washed Fritillary. After this relaxing intermezzo we walked along the rest of the red route, with finally a Golden Eagle and a Sparrowhawk.
We found a (large) campsite about 10 km east of Calvi and again we ended the day with yet another swim in the Mediterranean.

28-06-2005

Most of the morning was spent driving along the scenic route from Calvi south to Porto. Calvi is an interesting town that might be worth a visit. The route south is offers some quite magnificent coastal views but it is a pretty slow drive. Our first Osprey was flying into the mountains with a big fish in its talons. In Porto we took the D84 into the mountains to visit ‘Gorge de Spelunca’, a nice gorge near Ota with an old Genoa bridge dating from the 11th century. No animals of interest, though this apparently is a great spot to find Corsican Salamander.
This excursion took us about 3 hours and after that we went on our way to Cargèse. Just north of Cargèse we found a ‘campsite with a view’ for our last night on the island. This campsite was also good for birds with a family of Cirl Buntings, several Spotted Flycatchers and a Red-backed Shrike next to our tent while several Bee-eaters and an Osprey flew by. Just before dusk the Nightjars and of course the obligatory Scops-Owl started to call.

29-06-2005

Without too much difficulty we found a trail onto Cargèse Headlands. We were told that this area might produce Rock Sparrow. We couldn’t find one though but the area made for great birding with quite some new species for our trip list

The first birds we encountered here where both Dartford and Marmora’s warblers (again with juvenile birds). Some really decent birding only started at the far end of this peninsula where it is impossible to walk on without great risk. Here we found our first and only Blue Rock-Thrushes and our only reliable Rock Pigeons. Several Scopoli’s Shearwaters passed close to shore. Another Audouin’s Gull flew by plus several small groups of Shags including the (for this subspecies characteristic) pale-bellied young. Also another Osprey flew by. On the way back we flushed two Red-legged Partridges. All in all this is a very nice spot and probably not much visited by tourists.
On the way to Ajaccio, from where our ferry would leave, we only stopped at the Liamone river mouth where Common Moorhen, Little Ringed Plover and Common Cuckoo were new for our trip list. The presence of a Black Crow among the ever present Carrion Crows was a surprise to us.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in Ajaccio, buying souvenirs whilst waiting for the ferry to leave. One of the first forest fires was easily extinguished by two fire extinguishing planes (back home we heard about severe forest fires that very day in the north of Corsica). The ferry left at about 07:00 p.m., giving us enough time to check the water for shearwaters. Shearwater activity was unfortunately pretty low with a flock of three Scopoli’s at first and another two later on. But the real surprise took more time to arrive (too much time in fact for Marc, who decided to call it a day and went to bed early): a Fin Whale crossed the ferry’s path! A bit of a panicky moment in fact but eventually I had great views of this huge animal whilst it swam alongside the boat.

30-06-2005

The boat arrived on time in Marseille, after another good night in a cabin. It took only 15 minutes to get us out of Marseille and within 1.5 hours later we arrived in the Camarque. We visited a spot for Moustached Warbler: La Capelière where we tried for about 2 hours to find one. But it turned out to be energy ill spent. However, the usual suspects were present: Black-winged Stilt, Pied Avocet, Greater Flamingo and more. We drove to a pratincole spot (Mas d’Agon) where we found a feeding flock of Collared Pratincoles, a few Squacco Herons and our sole Purple Heron. Also present were Little Emperor and Mallow Skipper (our first skipper of the trip!).
We drove to the small village of St. Martin de Crau where we were just in time to visit the Ecocentre to buy a two day entrance ticket to Peau de Meau.

On our way to Peau de Meau we found the first two Rollers, which is apparently not a difficult bird to find in the Crau area. We came across quite a few at several places including 4 birds feeding over a field just before entering Peau de Meau. The desert was hot and deserted. The only active birds were Tawny Pipit and Greater Short-toed Lark and numerous birds of prey including a Short-toed Eagle. The vegetation along a canalised stream held a family of Melodious Warblers and a Golden Oriole was calling from the forest opposite the stream. The stream was also nice for dragonflies. Copper Demoiselle was abundant, and there were also substantial numbers of Southern Damselfly (Coenagrion caerulescens), White-legged Damselfly, Orange Damselfly (Platycnemis acutipennis), Norfolk Hawker, Onychogomphus uncatus, Keeled Skimmer and Southern Darter (Sympetrum meridionale). Some interesting butterflies were also present: Marbled Skipper, Bath White and Gatekeeper.
In the afternoon we drove to the airport near Eyguieres . This is known to be one of the best spots for Little Bustard. Since it was still pretty hot all activity was low, except for the Rollers that were also present here. It took us over three hours before we finally found two displaying males Little Bustard close to the hangars. With another 3 hours of light we decided to go back to Peau de Meau to have a bit to eat and maybe another chance for Lesser Kestrel, which we failed to locate during our first visit. While scanning the area we found three Eurasian Thick-knees and also heard a few calling. There were quite some kestrels present this time, mostly perched on and hunting from the rock piles but it took until nearly dark before we found a beautiful male Lesser Kestrel. Another one was seen very far away with not much blue on its wings. Most probably all the pile sitting kestrels were Lesser but we didn’t try to identify the female types from that far away. There were also Common Kestrels present but they appeared to hover a lot more often. Sun was setting already and with the images of that splendid male Lesser Kestrel in our memories we decided to skip the last day and drive home during the night. With a small stop for a quick sleep it took us about 14 hours to drive back home.

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