Mammals
Small mammals abound: moles, voles, hedgehogs, red foxes, weasels, genets, coypu, otters and hares make the grasses rustle. Pipistrelles, small bats, fly precisely overhead at night. The wolf, once more present, is slowly reappearing. Deer, roe deer, mouflon, chamois and ibex have been reintroduced by humans, while the Camarguais, a small white horse considered one of the world's oldest breeds, lives in total freedom in the coastal marshes. Wild boar have proliferated and become so numerous in some parts of the region that hunting is still necessary, and permitted for longer in the département, to rebalance their population. Even if the beautiful old transhumance paths in the Cévennes are less frequented, flocks of sheep and goats and their shepherds can still be seen. The bull, and all the culture that surrounds it, is still firmly established in the south of the Gard.
Birds
The nightingale plays its wide repertoire until the middle of the night, when the owl's call also echoes. The hoopoe is surprising, the robin curious, while blackbirds remain more indifferent but unafraid. In the early days of April, it's said to be good luck to touch coins when you first hear the cuckoo sing. Turtle-doves are noisy in their flight, while partridges sometimes line the roads. There's something soothing about the wide, gliding circles of the white-winged vulture or the common buzzard. The thrush is not uncommon, nor is the kestrel, nor the crow, but the raven or the vulture stay aloft. And of course there are the pink flamingos, the great cormorants and the majestic swans of the Camargue, which retain a touch of the exotic. In the Camargue alone, 350 bird species have been inventoried. The heron also ventures onto the Gardons. And so many other small and large birds accompany everyday life in the Gard, to the delight of the ears first, and then the eyes, for those who know how to see them.
Reptiles and amphibians
Small lizards live in the faïsses, as do green lizards, although these are less common nowadays. Harmless Montpellier and Aesculapian garter snakes are fairly common, and move into the sun as soon as the first warm sunny days arrive. In spring and autumn, breeding salamanders are best avoided on roads after rain. Knifeed pelobates can be found along the coast, as can Natterjack toads. The red-legged frog and the spiny toad live in the Cévennes. The Camargue is home to the European cistude, one of France's three wild tortoises.
Spiders and insects
Praying mantises can be observed, while Andalusian and common cicadas and field crickets can be heard. Dragonflies and butterflies abound throughout the Gard and make charming company along rivers. Spiders, especially small ones like the cinnabar, are lovely to look at with their red, mottled backs. The bupreste and the golden ketonia look like jewels on the foliage. Bees, in wild swarms or raised by numerous beekeepers, find a privileged territory in the Gard.
Fish
The Camargue offers an interesting mix of fresh, brackish and salt water. Eels and shad migrate here. Sea bream, staple fish, cod and red mullet are found in the sea. Trout are the most popular fish in Gard's rivers, but the controlled waterways allow pike to thrive in the more stable stretches, to the delight of fishing enthusiasts.
Flora
The garrigue is considered to be the result of the degradation of the primitive holm oak forest caused by human activity over several centuries. However, holm oaks still predominate. The undergrowth is home to a number of other plant species, the most common of which are laurel, sarsaparilla, clematis and, more rarely, the peony, which manages to thrive in the shade of the trees. In troughs and faults with deeper soil, white or pubescent oak is found. In rocky areas, the remaining vegetation makes the most of any soil. This is where rosemary, straight thistle and ryegrass grow as shrubs. On the moors, we find boxwood, pistachio, juniper, broom and thyme. In the basins and plains, vineyards have replaced cereal crops.
In the Cévennes, chestnut cultivation, introduced in the Middle Ages, has long defined the landscape, but climate change and disease are gradually leading to its disappearance. Maritime pine is tending to replace it. Chestnut was planted by monks, pine by the mining industry, for its rapid growth and noisy cracking before breaking - which warned workers of the risk of tunnel collapse. Mulberry trees were cultivated for silk and worm farming, and their presence in the area is still historic.
Laricio and Scots pines are common in the mountains. A few olive trees here and there complete the palette of greens that fill the eye from spring onwards. In the valleys or at mid-altitude, acacia offers its honey in April and black elderberry its syrup in May and June. Wild cherry, birch and whitebeam grow alongside callune, arbutus, heather and fern in the undergrowth. Higher up, beech trees appear, surrounded by raspberry, bilberry, goldenrod, fir, spruce and mountain ash. The Généragues bamboo grove and its avenue of redwoods, the result of more than a hundred years of planting, is a striking but enchanting addition to the Cévennes landscape.
Camargue's rose gardens are considered among the largest in Europe. The sansouïres, created by the tides and therefore highly saline, make up a large part of the landscape. Salicornia, soda, obiones and saladelles can be found here. The marshes are home to bulrushes, rushes and phragmites. The riparian forests, formed by trees along watercourses, include species common to the region, such as white poplar, field elm, ash, white willow, tamarisk, sauce laurel, brambles, hawthorn, and a few creepers such as honeysuckle, wild vine and traveller's madder.
