Tuesday 3rd May (Formation Flying for Fourteen Fabulous Flamingoes)


Mr. Kite looked out of The Joint window to see black bulls with bells, white horses and Cattle Egrets. Now being in the Camargue what would you expect. Mr. Kite and His Lady had a breakfast of coffee, toast and marmalade with a Nightingale singing in a nearby bush.

Soon Mr. Kite was cycling along the road to Mejanes. Mr. Kite saw Magpies, Mallards, Little Egrets and Black Kites. In the clear blue sky above Mr. Kite watched white Meditteranean Gulls soar and glide. On a spring morning Mr. Kite pedaled casually until he reached Etang de Vaccares where he walked along the shores until he spotted a group of Greater Flamingoes.

Now this was a truly splendid sight a group of Greater Flamingoes feeding in the water. These birds were tall, slim, white, red with s-shaped heads and necks with red rears. As Mr. Kite watched them sifting the water with their large bills a group of fourteen took to the air. Feeding Flamingoes are a spectacular sight but fourteen flying in line is better. Their long bodies and legs are supported by slow beating wings of black, red and white. With their head and legs outstretched these birds are then streamlined and more aerodynamic and slowly gain speed flying low over the water until they are flying fast enough to climb steeply. Mr. Kite then went on to watch a lot more Greater Flamingoes.

Returning along a track Etang de Vaccares Mr. Kite heard a familiar 'prrup, prrup' sound; the first time this year. Looking over a rough heath Mr. Kite could see the silhouette of a Bee-eater flying over the scrubby land. On a bank Mr. Kite could see four colourful Bee-eaters sitting near holes that would be used for nesting. These blue, green, yellow and brown birds were another exotic sighting and memorable.

Soon after Mr. Kite watched a Honey Buzzard fly out of a wood and soar over the flat warm land and heard the 'tzip, tzip, tzip' as a Fan-tailed Warbler flew out of the reeds and into a bush; another attractive brown little bird.

On a fine warm day Mr. Kite returned to The Joint to celebrate a great day's bird-watching with a tipple of La Becasse Biere Lambic Kriek. Now to Mr. Kite that is 'cherry flavoured beer; one of his favourite brews and suitable for any thirsty beer drinking birder. With the name La Becasse, French for Woodcock, and with a picture of La Becasse de bois on the bottle what could be a more appropriate tipple for a beer drinking bird-watcher in The Camargue. Cheers from a relaxing Mr. Kite.