French communes share studies of local flora and fauna with residents

A town in Brittany is the latest to publish its communal biodiversity atlas, revealing the fauna and flora found there during two years of observation.

The Atlas de la biodiversité communale (ABC) scheme was promoted by the Environment Ministry.

It has two main aims: to improve knowledge of local biodiversity, and to share information with residents and organisations.

This, in turn, will help inform environmental strategies to better support the flora and fauna of France.

Approximately 1,000 ABCs have already been published throughout the country, at a commune level right up to regional parks. They generally take two to three years to make, as an area must be monitored over at least the duration of a year to observe all the seasons.

In Quimper (Brittany), the process took two years and covered around 100 hectares over 12 sites. These sites were chosen for being representative of the rest of the area. 

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Variety

Albéric Levain, director of the landscapes, vegetation and biodiversity department in Quimper, told The Connexion: “Quimper has a lot of variety: there are agricultural, urban and rural areas, so it was important to represent all of the natural environments.” 

In total, 343 species of plants, 402 species of insects and invertebrates, 83 species of birds, eight species of amphibians, two species of reptiles, 13 species of chiropterans and 12 species of mammals were found.

The ABCs are voluntary, so any commune can decide to make one, although Quimper did receive subsidies for this one.

One of the main takeaways from the atlas was the sheer variety of natural environments, which provide a habitat for a range of species, including carnivorous plants.

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“Lots of bats were found, which is very positive because they tend to be fragile animals that require a specific habitat.” he continued.

Future strategy

However, the point was not to find rare species or animals that Quimper has and other towns do not, Mr Levain said.

“Rather, it is to show that every species is important to its environment.”

Invasive plants pose a problem for Quimper and, with the help of the atlas, a strategy will be drawn up to tackle the issue.

You can find out whether your local authority has drawn up an atlas – and, if so, read it – by searching abc.naturefrance.fr.