The wild life of monuments (France 5): do we zap or watch?

The “resisters”, in the spotlight this Monday, January 2, 2023 from 9 p.m. on France 5 in the documentary The Wildlife of Monuments, are those animals that have survived many upheavals and have found refuge in our monuments. So, should we watch this program which gives them pride of place? We tell you everything.

Several castles, fortresses and cathedrals in France are home to more or less discreet animals. These monuments are even sometimes the only habitat of certain species. Therefore, how to reconcile the preservation of biodiversity and the renovation of the built heritage? This is the question that an exciting documentary attempts to answer, The wildlife of the monuments: the resistance fightersbroadcast on January 2, 2023 at 9 p.m. on France 5.

funny birds

Sometimes things happen “naturally”. Thus, after the fire of Notre-Dame de Paris in 2019, which Jean-Jacques Annaud reconstructed in his film Notre Dame is burning, the couple of kestrels that nested there found refuge 500 meters away, on the roofs of the Sainte-Chapelle. Further on, in Lorraine, storks have been the focus of all the attention of ornithologists. Indeed, the waders had installed their nest at the top of a chimney of the Château d’Haroué. If the owner of the house says she is delighted, because a superstition claims that it brings good luck, she is no less concerned because the construction could be damaged under their weight. And when we know that a stork’s nest can weigh up to 400 kg, we understand his concern! “Difficult to find the right compromise“, she explains in front of the cameras.

The last refuge of endangered species

The situation is more delicate when the monument is the only place of life for certain animals and the slightest change in their environment can prove fatal. This is the case at the Château d’If, which is home to a lizard from the gecko family: the European phyllodactyle. This tiny reptile has found refuge in the crevices of the fortress. Problem: the decrepit building requires major restoration work which involves filling in all the gaps where it lives. The stakes are high because this protected species could disappear permanently from France. The case is analogous in the arenas of Nîmes where the water which infiltrates everywhere threatens the stability of the building. However, it is this humidity that allows the Roman clausilia, a small snail that arrived there with the Romans 2,000 years ago, to live there. The work aimed at sealing the arenas therefore represents a real danger for the harmless gastropod, all the more precious since it does not live anywhere else in France. Fortunately, in both cases, animal lovers are doing everything possible to preserve the fragile balance between the protection of living things and the conservation of buildings.