Observer les oiseaux en Martinique et en Guadeloupe

In August 2005, Valéry Schollaert have visited the French overseas départements of Guadeloupe and Martinique in the Lesser Antilles Archipelago, which stretch in an arc from the Greater Antilles to the north-eastern part of South America. These small islands (Martinique : 1 128 km², Guadeloupe : 1 438 km2) are volcanic (La Montagne Pelée in Martinique or La Soufrière in Guadeloupe are famous for their past eruptions), and partly mountainous. They have a rich variety of habitats ranging from rain forest (including lowland and lower montane types), with montane thicket, palm brake and elfin forest along summits, to dry forest and mangroves in the lowlands.
Some endemic species (for the silands or for the Lesser Antilles) can be found on the both islands (for example White-breasted Thrasher and Martinique Oriole in Martinique, or Guadeloupe Woodpecker in Guadeloupe). In addition to these restricted-range birds, Guadeloupe and Martinique are important for many North American migrants and for seabirds, with many of the smaller, uninhabited islands having large and varied seabird breeding populations.
All the spots indicated in this article are situated on our map of Martinique and on our map of Guadeloupe.