Rate birdingplace Plan d'Eau de Plobsheim
Description
The lake of Plobsheim is a large basin that was build to regulate the water of the river Ill. There are shallow waters in the south and deeper waters in the north where the basin is conected to the river Rhine.
In migrating times the south is a good place to watch waders like Chevalier gambette , Chevalier arlequin , Chevalier aboyeur , Bécasseau minute and Bécasseau variable . Other migrating species are Sterne pierregarin, Sterne caspienne and Balbuzard pêcheur . There is a chance to see rarer species like Guifette moustac , Guifette leucoptère and Aigrette garzette hunting for fish. In spring and summer the northern part of the area is rather uninteresting for watching birds. That changes in autumn and especially in winter.
Almost the whole year but especially in winter the area is one of the best places in the Upper Rhine region to watch all sorts of ducks, grebes and divers. Even rarer species like Plongeon imbrin , Fuligule nyroca and Harle huppé can be found here. For divers the north of the area is a good place to have a look in winter. It can be worth it to look a the gulls more closely. Sometimes there are Mouette pygmée , Mouette mélanocéphale and Goéland pontique between the Goéland leucophée and Mouette rieuse .
In the forest near by you can see Loriot d'Europe and Gobemouche noir in summer and all sorts of woodpeckers.
Détails
Accès
The area is near the city of Strasbourg. The nearest trainstation can be found in the village Erstein. From there the site can be reached by bike. Furthermore there are many spots to park your car. Click on a P in the map for directions.
) Insérez les noms d'oiseau dans votre langue. Ils seront automatiquement traduits pour les autres usagers !
FR: Hélas, les distances d'observation sont un peu grandes. Mais, en hiver, les espèces sont exceptionnelles ! Un incontournable !
EN: Unfortunately, the viewing distances are a bit large. But, in winter, the species are exceptional! A must!
I have been there in late August from approx. 15:00 - 17:00. I haven't really seen anything special, just a lot of Cygne tuberculé and the usual waterbirds. Grand Cormoran ... I started at the point in the north where there was really nothing to observe until the point where there is the red sign on the map above. There I could see many Cygne tuberculé (but nothing else). I tried going a bit further but I did not have enough time to really go any further. I would really much recommend to start the route at the other side and then consider on how far you wanna walk that trail. This site might be better in winter, but for me in summer the place was nothing special today.
FR: Super sortie, sur un magnifique site. Observation exceptionnelle de Harle bièvre, de Garrot à oeil d'or, de Nette rousse, de Plongeon imbrin et de Cormoran pygmée ! Un site incontournable pour les oiseaux d'eau hivernants en Alsace.
EN: Magnificent site. Outstanding observations of Harle bièvre, Garrot à oeil d'or, Nette rousse, Plongeon imbrin and Cormoran pygmée! An essential site for wintering waterbirds in Alsace.
The Krafft end of the Plan d'eau de Plobsheim can be a source of constant disappointment given the distances involved and the possibility of inconsiderate fishermen spooking every bird in the area, but it's also the place where I've seen Cormoran pygmée, Crabier chevelu, Bécasseau de Temminck, Ibis falcinelle, Bondrée apivore and several other species that are very unlikely to be found anywhere else in the Bas-Rhin. A spotting scope is essential rather than merely useful, and close-up photos are highly unlikely, but it's worth checking out faune-france or faune-alsace for recent sightings to find out whether a visit might be worthwhile anyway. (The northern end around Sept-Ecluses probably deserves its own page)