Flamingos and Garrigue

 
I can never come to terms with seeing flamingos by the roadside. They are such surreal creatures that being in commonplace locations seems wrong. But hey, so long as I don't drive off the road when I see sights like this, I'll put up with them.

A day's car hire was needed to get into the outback for some garrigue fun. This was only possible after a long lecture from the car hire rep who was clearly convinced that I would not be able to drive safely and return the vehicle in one piece. I didn't mention the flamingos.

The Natura 2000 website showed an interesting area called La Montagne de la Moure et Causse d'Aumelas near Sète, under both Habitats and Birds directives. In the event there were few birds - Black Kites and a couple of Short-toed Eagles - but there were plenty of butterflies and plants to keep me interested. Another feature that looked promising was the stream marked alongside the road, but given the lack of rain this was of course dry.

The usual rock / cistus / asphodel view

The stunning Provencal Orange Tip

These blues are apparently Baton Blues....

There were a few orchids.....

 Yellow Bee Orchid

Woodcock Orchid

Giant Orchid

But in fact the other plants (unknown to me and mostly still a mystery) were more interesting...