Photo: © Olivier Pastor
Preparing nesting islets at the Salins d'Hyères, France
30 April 2024
Each year, before the arrival of nesting birds, maintenance work is required on the dedicated islets. There are two types of islets: those created where none existed originally by remodelling old dikes or adding soil; and floating islets, built off-site in workshops using wood and polystyrene for buoyancy, then covered with soil and sand. The management team from MTPM (Métropole Toulon Provence Méditerranée) is fully committed to this essential task to support and conserve a wide variety of bird species.
In March of this year, the campaign focused on several sites:
Nesting islets in the Redon marsh
A scrub clearance campaign was carried out around the islets, which had become heavily overgrown with glasswort. These floating islets, installed in 2021, are now degraded and scheduled to be replaced for the 2026 breeding season. In the meantime, sand—an ideal substrate for nesting species such as avocets and terns—was added.
Islets of La Capte
Several interventions took place on these islets, including clearing glasswort, removing the herbaceous layer, decompacting the substrate (including that of the floating islets), and adding sand.
The flamingo islet in the southern pond of Les Pesquiers
This fairly large islet was weeded using a rotavator to reduce the regrowth of common reeds (Phragmites).
Islet of Jeu du Bassin No. 2 (Vieux Salins)
This islet, which hosted a large portion of the nesting bird population in 2025, also underwent major maintenance: partial vegetation removal; soil decompaction; and the addition of sand to promote nest establishment.
These islets are now ready to welcome breeding bird pairs. The first monitoring counts in April will provide insight into their occupancy.
Clean-up activities
Two waste collection operations were carried out:
- At the Salin des Pesquiers, on Saturday 4 April 2025.
- At Vieux Salins, on Sunday 5 April 2025.
These actions were organized with the association Explore & Preserve and 60 of their members or volunteers. In total, 150 kg of waste was collected from the perimeter canal of the Salin des Pesquiers, and 80 kg from the Vieux Salins canal.
More information:
Contact:
SIMO Marc, Manager of Salins d’Hyères
msimo@metropoletpm.fr