The corniches de l’Hospitalet

4 points of interest

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  Flora

  Ash trees

  Ash trees, like the ones that border the path, like cool and damp environments. They were planted alongside paths by locals because ash branches, cut towards the end of summer, provided additional fodder for livestock.

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  Fauna

  Bush crickets

  Dry grassland is home to a multitude of insects, including bush crickets. At night, they produce a squealing sound by rubbing the stubs of their wings together. The sound has given them the name of “gouzi”. But despite their musical wings, they cannot fly, and hide in vegetation (such as boxwood or juniper bushes) to escape predators.

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  Geology

  The evolution of the landscape

  140 million years ago, the sea was shrinking, and the Can de l’Hospitalet and Causse Méjean were not yet separated by the Tarnon valley. The landscape was completely different then. In a hot and humid climate, limestone “turrets” overlooked rivers whose routes were different from today's. Successive uplifts, shifts on either side of geological faults and the slow work of erosion have created the relief you see today. You have panoramic views over the valley of the Baumale, a tributary of the Tarnon, and, opposite you, the Causse Méjean. It is difficult to make out the limit between the limestone zone and the schist zone in this heavily wooded landscape.

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  Geology

  Schist or dolomite

  Schist areas form a rock base on which layers of sediment - limestone and dolomite - have collected. These are covered in chestnut trees and heaths of heather, broom and ferns unless they have been reforested. Underneath this vegetation, the transition between the two bedrocks is not always visible, but it is indicated by the human settlements at mid-slope. Rainwater that has filtered through the rocks emerges again where it hits the impermeable schist, creating springs.