Bird Watching Site

Between 2005 and 2013, the Gambsheim dam was the subject of 8,149 bird observations recorded on the www.faune-alsace.org platform.

These data cover 179 different species, some with multiple statuses: 60 species breed there, 68 are observed in winter, and 135 during migrations.

Water birds are central among the breeders, including species like the Mallard, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, and Common Shelduck.

The Little Ringed Plover frequents bare gravel areas.

In the 2000s, a large colony of Black-headed Gulls, numbering over 4,000 pairs, settled on the upstream spur, accompanied by some Mediterranean Gulls. Today, these species breed only sporadically, unlike the Yellow-legged Gull, present every year.

In winter, the site attracts nearly 3,000 water birds each January, mainly Mallards, Tufted Ducks, Eurasian Wigeons, Common Teals, Pochards, Great Cormorants, and Eurasian Coots.

During migrations, the vast water bodies provide food resources for Black Terns, Little Gulls, Black-necked Grebes, and Ospreys.

Mudflats and exposed areas become resting places for many shorebirds such as Little Stints, Temminck's Stints, Dunlins, Marsh Sandpipers, and various Redshanks. More rarely, large waders like the Little Egret or Eurasian Spoonbill can be observed, as well as rarer species such as the White-winged Black Tern, Caspian Tern, Pied Avocet, or Sabine's Gull.