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Chick Rearing & Juveniles
Late June at the Hâble d'Ault offers a rare and moving sight: seabirds accompanying their young on their first flights. This is the season when chicks leave the nest to explore the lagoons, when parents guide them through essential behaviors, when the fragile bond between generations is formed — ensuring the survival of species.
Immerse yourself in this unique Natura 2000-classified site, set among salt marshes, dunes, and rare shingle beaches found nowhere else in Europe. Discover bird families in full activity: common terns escorting their offspring in the air, elegant avocets leading their chicks toward feeding grounds, black-tailed godwits sweeping across wet meadows in tight formation, and common redshanks trampling shallow puddles where insects and small crustaceans hide.
We will also take time to observe family behaviors: chick feeding by regurgitation, predator defense (foxes, gulls), learning to swim and dive, and coordination between mates. Up close, these scenes reveal the adaptive intelligence and complexity of survival strategies.
Your guide will explain full breeding cycles — from courtship display to the fledging of young — along with year-to-year variations in breeding success (weather conditions, food availability, human disturbance) and conservation measures in place to protect sensitive sites (signposting, temporary access restrictions, monitoring).
This season demands strict respect for nesting zones: we will stay on marked trails and maintain a cautious distance from sensitive areas. Your guide will indicate when to stand perfectly still to avoid startling adults incubating or feeding their brood.
The outing is suitable for beginners and experienced birders alike, in a friendly spirit. Bring lightweight but protective clothing (strong sun at this time of year), a hat or cap, high-factor sunscreen, and comfortable waterproof footwear (muddy patches in places). A flask of chilled herbal tea will be provided during breaks.
👉 What to bring: Lightweight and waterproof clothing, hat, sunscreen, waterproof shoes; binoculars recommended (rental available on request). Water and sun protection provided on site.
⚠️ Notice: Some areas may be closed to access during the nesting period. Strict adherence to signage and guide instructions is mandatory.
Venue Information - The Hâble d'Ault
A former maritime lagoon sheltered from the sea by an impressive pebble spit, the Hâble d'Ault stretches over approximately 180 hectares between Cayeux-sur-Mer and Ault, south of the Somme Bay. This unique geomorphological site owes its existence to the slow erosion of the Norman chalk and flint cliffs, whose pebbles carried by littoral drift formed a natural rampart against the Channel's onslaughts.
Closed off from the sea in 1766 by the construction of the Grand Barrement dyke, the site was once the largest fishing centre in northern France during the Middle Ages, before being converted to agriculture and then hunting. Now managed as a wildlife and hunting reserve by the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB), it stands as one of the most significant ornithological sites on the French coastline.
Over 270 migratory bird species have been recorded here since the late 19th century. The reserve is a critical waypoint on the Atlantic flyway migratory corridor: greylag geese, Garganey, northern shovelers, Eurasian spoonbills, pied avocets and numerous shorebirds stop over in spring and autumn. The botanical wealth is equally remarkable, with nearly 250 plant species, some of which — such as sea kale (Crambe maritima) — are nationally protected.
Between brackish waters, reedbeds and pebbles, the Hâble d'Ault offers a landscape that is both mineral and alive, where each tide reshapes the feeding and resting grounds of hundreds of birds. An exceptional exploration ground for any naturalist.
Ticket Information
| Ticket Type | Price | Available Place |
|---|---|---|
|
DEVORNI-AULT-004-A Ticket Adulte |
€15.00 | 12 |
|
DEVORNI-AULT-004-E Ticket Enfant (moins de 12 ans) |
€10.00 | 12 |
Location Map
Speakers
Gregory Brouilliard
Naturalist Guide
As a naturalist guide, passionate amateur photographer, and ornithologist at heart, I invite you to walk at my pace—the pace of attentive observation.
My story is woven between France and Taiwan, two lands that shaped how I view nature: precise and analytical on one hand, deeply sensory and respectful of living things on the other.
Birds have led me along countless trails, my camera taught me patience, and it's this enduring enthusiasm that I'm eager to share with you today.
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