Yes, Magnolia is in the countryside and there are animals other than humans living here. Let’s get the scary stuff over with first. Here are the top two concerns, bats and snakes.

See this page for potential pests in the house (ants, mice & food moths).

Bats

If you leave shutters open at night (so that they are folded back onto the walls) after a few nights you may find a small colony of bats. The tell-tale sign that they are roosting is bat poo on the floor.

They are also often seen in the boiler room and garage. Occasionally they roost in the cellar. We once found them in the attic and also on the sofa!

Snakes

They will disappear before you even know that they were there. Most are harmless. However, in the highly unlikely event that you get bit, you must go immediately to the hospital (24 hours open) at St. Foy. Pictured for example, is a Western Whip Snake, looks bad right, all that yellow. It is actually harmless. 

Wall Lizards

Wall lizard (scientific name : Podarcis muralis) is a small lizard, that lives in Spain, France, Italy and the Balkans. It is quite common. The wall lizard lives in wall cracks, or stones piles. They can be seen basking in the sun on the rocks, to warm themselves and get energy.

Other Animals, Birds & Insects

Praying Mantis

I’ve only ever seen one. It sneaked up on me, below the Magnolia. I was shocked to say the least. I thought they were only found in places like Borneo! According to the locals they are quite common!

Some of the other animals and wild life you could see include:

• • Deer
  • Wild-boar (not seen one, but certainly heard them)
  • Owls (often sat on the road in the middle of the night, in 2022 we had a barn-owl in the Gite)
  • Red kite (almost extinct in the UK)
  • Hoopoe (beautiful bird with long curled beak and black and white stripes on lower half of the body)
  • Egrets
  • Kingfishers along the Dordogne
  • Weasels