3 Vautours

The vultures

High above the peaks, this powerful bird of prey with its hooked beak and sharp talons surveys the Gorges du Verdon in monastic silence. Nothing could be more normal for a black vulture!

Vol d'un vautour
Le vol de Vautour

The vertigo of an encounter

Let yourself be carried away by the synchronized ballet of the giants of the air.

During a walk in the Verdon, you can observe three species of vulture and their characteristic flights. They glide in spirals in search of favourable winds to move around. and find their food. Slow, haunting, mysterious, their shadows hover in the clouds.

This bird of prey, with its long, angular, plucked neck, feeds exclusively on dead animals, earning it the name of the sky’s garbage collector. His role as gravedigger has long provoked disgust and fear in men. As a result, they fell victim to a poor image that contributed to their disappearance from Haute-Provence and even the Alps in the 19th century.

Aegypius monachus Black vulture

A successful reintroduction!

Since 1999, vultures have once again been flying over the Gorges du Verdon, thanks to passionate ornithologists and various associations, notably the ligue de protection des oiseaux (LPO). There are now more than 300 individuals, including a hundred pairs, soaring from the cliffs of the Gorges du Verdon. 600,000 hectares.

Did you know?

Did you know-icon

During the nesting season of vultures and other cliff-nesting birds,
certain climbing routes should be avoided.

Observer les vautours
Les vautours dans les routes des crêtes

Where can you see vultures?

Watching vultures in the Verdon is easy enough, but patience and discretion are the key to magic. Just take the

Route des Crêtes

à
La Palud-sur-Verdon
(partially closed in winter from the Pas de la Baou to the Chalet de la Maline, while the other lookouts remain accessible), which birds of prey regularly fly over.
Numerous belvederes offer impressive vantage points from which to admire them at close quarters.
. But to contemplate the griffon vulture, his majesty the black vulture and the Egyptian vulture known as the Egyptian vulture, the unconditional spot remains the village of Rougon. On a rock opposite the village, some thirty birds scan the horizon. The scene is almost surreal!

When is the best time to observe them?

Did you know-icon

Raptors wait for the warming atmosphere to create thermal lift, so they can soar effortlessly. Later in the morning, they will set off in small groups in search of food.

For most of the day, and especially in the early evening, they will hover in large circles above the gorge.

Vautour, chat sauvage

3 good reasons to go vulture watching

Contemplate their agility in remaining in static flight in the midst of gusty winds.


Be aware of their scale. From wingtip to wingtip, it can be up to 2.80 m!


To be lucky enough to see them is to experience the “Wow!” effect when they pass two meters above our heads.

Further information

Parking

You can park at the various lookouts on the 1st part of the Route des Crêtes.

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Preparing well

Your stay in the Verdon