other contenders for their females. The ibex was hunted to extinction in the Alps and only reintroduced in the 1960s, but unfortunately it was discovered in 2013 and again in 2015 that some of the animals had contracted brucellosis, a disease that can be transmitted to livestock and humans. Farmers were concerned about their cattle and about cheese production, and as a result an enormous cull took place, amid much controversy.
Ibex on the Cornettes de Bise (Walk 21): photo Philip Jenkins
The chamois is a daintier, lighter and more agile animal than the ibex, being the alpine representative of the antelope family. With a pretty, striped brown and cream face, the males having two small curving horns, they are often to be seen in large herds leaping from rock to rock in the most inhospitable places, but you will rarely get near them as they are timid and nervous. Their speed and agility is due to their hooves which, like small cushions on normal terrain, have the ability to widen and become like crampons on precipitous rocky slopes. Although chamois can still be hunted, quotas have been strictly controlled since 1982, and hunting is restricted to a few weeks in the autumn.
The moufflon is a species of mountain sheep with thick, scroll-shaped horns. It was first introduced to the alpine regions from Corsica in the 1950s so that it could be hunted and thus solve a food problem. In 1969 about 60 animals were installed in different areas of the Haute Savoie, including in the Réserve Naturelle du Mont de Grange in the Val d’Abondance, and in 1978 a herd was released on the slopes of the Tournette near Annecy. At present there are about 300 in the Haute Savoie, although some ecologists are against animals being introduced into a region where they were never endemic. They are passive, slow animals that spend at least eight hours a day peacefully grazing on the higher slopes.
If you come across a large patch of meadowland where the grass has been churned up and the earth turned over, you know that there are wildboar in the vicinity. This is not an animal one would choose to meet face to face – which fortunately is unlikely – since they can weigh as much as 150kg and be very aggressive if cornered. They are really just wild pigs that like to live in small herds, mainly in forest areas, and are more numerous in the wooded Jura mountains than the Alps. They have no enemies other than hunters, and their meat, rich and gamey, is considered a great delicacy.
The most charming of all the alpine animals is the marmot, which live in colonies above 1000m. If you hear a piercing whistle echoing across the slopes, stop dead in your tracks and keep your eyes peeled for one of these enchanting creatures, which are usually to be found in rocky grasslands. The whistle is the alarm call from the marmot on sentry duty telling his fellows that there is danger in the vicinity so that they can rush back into their burrows – a single cry warns of an airborne predator, and a series of cries of one on the ground. But they are not really shy creatures, and if you stay quiet, curiosity will overcome their fear and you will see a furry head pop out again to look around and survey the slopes.
During the winter months marmots hibernate in their deep, grass-lined burrows, living off accumulated fat until they emerge thin and hungry in mid-April. The marmot has few enemies, except for eagles who like to snatch the babies, and they have never been seriously hunted for food. They are prolific in the Alps and the walker has a good chance of seeing them on many occasions.
Marmots emerging from their burrow: photo Carol Saynor
Birds
Of all the alpine birds of prey, the most impressive is the golden eagle, which, having been protected for a number of years, can be seen more frequently. A more recent newcomer is the bearded vulture, which was reintroduced into the Alps in 1978 and of which there are now around 100 couples. In 1987, 19 young birds were introduced into the Haute Savoie, where they are heavily protected. With a wing span of three metres they are an awe-inspiring sight as they circle majestically among the high peaks.
One of the most interesting of birds to be found at around 2000m is the shy ptarmigan. The size of a pigeon, the ptarmigan can only fly for short bursts, preferring to stay on the ground pecking around for grass and berries. In summer its plumage is brown, a perfect camouflage against the rock and scree where between May and July the females will raise from four to eight chicks in a nest in a rocky hollow or long grass.
In winter ptarmigans turn white, merging with the snowy environment, and they protect themselves against the arctic cold by building an igloo in the snow with their claws, where they can remain for days without food. Unfortunately their numbers have been much reduced as they are often disturbed by skiers or caught in the overhead wires of ski lifts. The black grouse, renowned for its mating displays, is another bird that is fast disappearing due to ski installations and being hunted for the pot. It prefers bushy areas at altitudes between 1400m and 2600m.
Alpine choughs are to be found at the top of many a mountain, especially those frequented by picnickers. They are distinguished from the chough by their red legs and short yellow bill rather than a curved red one. They make a sinister, high-pitched screech that is in complete harmony with the precipitous rocky summits they favour. Look out too for falcons, buzzards, hawks, larks and the smaller birds such as the dipper, which loves to run along the bottom of rushing Alpine torrents at high altitude.
Butterflies
Butterflies can still be found in the meadows, and even at higher altitudes, including those that are now rare in Britain, such as the graceful, creamy yellow and brown swallowtails and the purple Camberwell beauty with its striking cream border. Among the commoner species there are plenty of red admirals, tortoiseshells, yellow brimstones and tiny meadow blues.
Plants and flowers
Clockwise from top right: fragrant orchid, yellow bellflower, alpenrose, soldanella, fairy foxgloves, alpine daffodils
One of the joys of walking in the mountains, especially in spring and early summer, is the abundance and variety of flowers growing in the Alpine pastures, among rock crevices, and in places where you would think no plant life could possibly take hold. The type of mountain terrain affects the species you will find, some thriving on granite, for example, while others prefer limestone. If you are interested in identifying and knowing the names of the individual species, buy a good flower book and a magnifying lens and keep them permanently in your rucksack, and remember to leave extra time for flower identification.
Some of the first flowers you will see in the year, pushing through the melting snow, are members of the bulb and corm family – thousands of little white and purple alpine crocuses, scillas, snowflakes and gageas. These are closely followed by soldanellas, spring gentians, alpine daffodils, sweet smelling narcissi, alpine anemones, violets, rockroses and the deep blue trumpet gentians.
In May and June come the small, delicate field orchids. The earliest of these are the early purple, which flower in April, and elderflower, the yellow and purple varieties growing side by side. Later you will find fragrant, common spotted, burnt, round-headed, pyramidal, butterfly and military, and in August the black vanilla, which actually smells of vanilla. Rarer ones are the lady orchid, which usually grows further south, the tiny green frog and the lady’s slipper, which can be found in isolated places. Most orchids have a spike of flowers, often with a sort of helmet behind, and the lower petal is in the shape of a lip.
In June look out for lilies, the delicate white paradise lily growing on the higher slopes, and the striking deep pink martagon or turk’s cap lily in woods or grassland. Common on high-altitude moorland is the well-known alpenrose (alpine rhododendron), a bushy evergreen shrub with clusters of pale pink to deep pinkish-red flowers, and of course every walker hopes one day to come across the rare edelweiss.
Yellow cowslips, oxlips and primulas are also in abundance, and you will find the pretty, lilac-pink bird’s eye primula farinosa growing beside streams and in damp places. The prolific creamy and yellow pulsatilla anemones and yellow globe flowers strike a vivid note on the green slopes, and the banks of the swollen rivulets