The Bois de Montanson ZNIEFF is one of the major natural sites in the south of the Haute-Marne département. It is located on a vast hill culminating at 414 metres and covers both its summit and slopes.
For nature lovers :
Vegetation:
Different types of forest can be found here depending on the soil and exposure: beech-oak-calcareous woodland (plateau), pubescent oak woodland (a rare southern forest grouping located here in a very warm microclimate) and dry beech woodland on well-exposed slopes, pinewoods (eastern part) and forest heaths (western slopes). The edges of the wood and the forest paths have a very typical and diverse flora. A few fragments of grassland remain on the edge of the wood and micro-moors on a clay layer. Some rare plant species can be found here, such as the highbush chrysanthemum, the small-flowered potentilla (at the limit of its range) and the astonishing violet in the woodland, the abortifacient limodora, the box tree and the peach-leaved bellflower on the edges and the bird's-foot sedge in the grassland, a mountain species protected in Champagne-Ardenne. The site has a large population of daffodil (which is very popular here), and is in good condition despite some overgrowth.
Fauna:
The avifauna is characterised by numerous passerines, woodpeckers and birds of prey (buzzard, bee-eater, sparrowhawk). The site is frequented by certain mammals (wild cat, marten, roe deer). The site is in good condition overall.
Bois de Montanson et Lisières
