The New French Forum

A few weeks ago we were aware of what we thought was a small, developing wasp nest high up under the roof of our hangar. Recently we'd both noticed the fast increasing size of the nest. The other day I mentioned to Biggles that the wasps looked rather large............. Today he was concerned about how large the nest now is (a bit smaller than a...

Although I am not in France, my French neighbour is taking great glee in sending me photos of my lawn covered in mole hills, the 1 acre lawn that I brought back from being a field in the summer and by my last visit in October looked fantastic but now resembles a a rugby pitch after a hard game !

In our village in Worcestershire, the soil is very...

For the first time this year here we heard them, but it was cloudy so didn't see them.

Here is the border of 46 and 24.

Anyone else seen or heard them?

I've just come in from the garden where I came across a dead snake lying across the stump of a tree which had recently been felled. I'm pretty sure it is a dead grass snake, about a metre long and it was full length across the stump. The head is missing and it seems a bit chewed up, but I don't understand how it could have been killed and left...

Did you know that they were present in France? - I certainly didn't.

There was a photo of the mother of a litter in a tree taken in l'Oise so there must be at least one mating pair.

A new word learned for me and a charming description Raton Laveur :D

First time ever a female mantis. I had to be careful getting the photo in case she ate me.

We have at least two resident hedgehogs here which is great for the garden, they seem to do a grand job of keeping the slugs under control.
We also have a couple of toads who live in the cellar but come up to the door at night and wind Spot up.
Last night when I let Spot out for his last pee one of the hedgehogs was eating a huge toad. Apparently...

I have seen a blue flash of a supersonic Kingfisher only a few times on our river, but today, one has decided to retire from fishing and go farming. I found him as the proverbial monty python parrot quite prone in my tractor.
How on earth (sky) did he get there

Oops caption is the wrong way around

Found by the cat, dead can anyone identify please

but not an edible one. I spotted this little chap when I took the dogs out yesterday afternoon and he/she is still there now and doesn't panic when touched. I thought that possibly it is waiting for passing flies, but am coming round to thinking that it is stuck. I loosened the soil around it with my finger but it made no difference. It is in an...

Anyone noticed at night that a small species of Bumblebee stay the night in flowerheads

France condemned by the European commission for using glue traps for catching birds.
Barbaric hunters.

Does anyone have any ideas for deterring snakes?
We have a beautiful whip snake who lives in the barn outside the garden, he is more than welcome to stay but his viper cousin who I spotted in the enclosed garden can bu**er off. I'm paranoid that the dog will meet him and come off worst. Yesterday the dog dived into the hedge and reappeared with a...

More squatters

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This lady must have a very clean chimney...

:) There is an exceptional number of butterflies this year. Is this something local or is it the same elsewhere? Could it be the mild winter or perhaps less use of pesticides? Whatever the reason, it's delightful to see them all.

They are driving me mad.

We have fly screens on all windows and doors that we open but what the very clever nasty things are doing, is clinging to the door net so when you go in and out, so do they!

We can't sit out on our terrace as we are tortured and nipped by the small black flies. We do have cows in the opposite field so that doesn't help....

I saw my first Pied Flycatcher the other day. What a handsome little bird! According to the book they're quite common but they don't seem to be round here.

Wondered if it is a tiger mosquito?

We are lucky to have a bunch (not sure of the collective noun, sorry) of red squirrels in our garden which, on the odd occasion we see them, give us a great deal of pleasure. At this time of the year we don't see them quite as much as I guess they're busy in the trees, but lately one has been active in view of our kitchen almost on a daily basis....

Taken from the Guardian newspaper. Not a lot we can do about it. We could ask the farmers to plant some forests stop using chemicals but I do not think they will listen. Penty of birds chirping away today in the center of France. See article below.

Bird populations across the French countryside have fallen by a third over the last decade and a...

Our cat caught a sparrow this morning, I picked the bird up, it was still breathing so I kept safe in an open box and put a small cage over it.

I wasn't sure if it would survive but like to try.

Late this afternoon it's still with us, but appears not to be able to fly although it can move about.

I've given it some bird feed and water and some...

This morning I was in the garden when I felt a 'tap' on the back of my knee & looking down there was a baby blue tit hanging on to my jeans.
Not being sure what to do I picked it off & with it perched on my hand looked around for mum.
Sure enough after a few minutes mum/dad arrived & proceeded to feed the baby on my hand. This went on for a while...

Whilst walking our 2 dogs along a quiet (never meet anyone) bridle path this afternoon, the dogs and myself spotted something of a gingerish colour which initially I thought was a cat.

The dogs ran after it, but they didn't scare it, and as I got closer I realised it was a piglet :!: Babe came to mind. I started to video it and it was grunting a...

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