South Along The Coast

Looking towards the Pyrenees from Port Leucate

A bright day with no wind so we headed south to the lagoon just alongside Port Leucate.  There were a lot of birds.  At least 30 Great White Egrets and a group of waders containing a Common Sandpiper, 6 Ringed Plovers, 8 Kentish Plovers and 15 Dunlin.  Moving on to Franqui there were more waders.  A single Redshank, 20 Dunlin and 5 Grey Plovers.

Grey Plover

We walked up to the little sewerage ponds where we flushed 5 Snipe and watched a superb Water Pipit.  We ate our lunch on the beach south of Port Nouvelle but added nothing there.  We pushed on to the harbour at Port Nouvelle where there we 4 Black-necked and 12 Great Crested Grebes.  Cormorants were also feeding and Yellow-legged Gulls were providing some great photo opportunities in the splendid light.

Yellow-legged Gull

We found another Black-necked Grebe at Peyriac a second Common Sandpiper and lots of Greater Flamingos some of which were engaging in display. Leaving Peyriac there were 8 White Storks feeding on a shallow lagoon.  Finally we called in at a small marsh on the edge of Narbonne.  A male Marsh Harrier and a Chiffchaff were the only species of note.