The coastline
The sandy coastline of the Camargue stretches for almost 95 kilometres from Le Grau du Roi to Fos-sur-Mer. Its sinuous shape and varying width are evidence of severe erosion caused by the Mistral wind and the Mediterranean Sea. To the east, the dunes of Beauduc and to the west, the dunes of Espiguette offer large, fine-sand beaches up to 1 km wide. Between these two points, the beaches at Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer and Salins de Giraud are gradually receding due to attacks from the Mediterranean Sea. The sea's incursions have created 'graus' in some places: narrow waterways that connect the inland lagoon to the sea.
The famous Espiguette beach
is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful beaches in the Mediterranean. Stretching for 18 km, it remains a completely unspoilt natural area. Consisting of white dunes characteristic of deserts, some of which reach a height of 12 metres, it is home to flora and fauna that can withstand this sandy, dry and salty environment. However, rising sea levels are weakening these dunes, and humans are trying to consolidate and protect them using 'ganivelles': wooden picket fences. Espiguette Beach is loved by tourists and locals alike for its dreamlike size and wildness. It is like a piece of desert lost at the end of the world.
Lagoons and salt marshes
The Camargue lagoons are made up of many shallow saltwater ponds which are naturally connected to each other and to the sea by channels. They are mainly located to the south of Vaccarès Pond. The lagoons experience significant variations in water level and salinity due to wind influence. The Mistral (a north wind) drives low-salinity water from Vaccarès Pond into the lagoons, reducing their salinity. Conversely, when the Marin (southerly wind) blows, it encourages seawater to enter the ponds, thereby increasing their salinity. In summer, some lagoons partially dry up, leaving salt marshes on the edges of the ponds. These steppes, which glow red in autumn, have limited flora. Only a few salt-loving plants, such as glasswort and sea lavender, manage to grow there. The lagoons' shallow depth has contributed to the development of significant biodiversity. The lagoons serve as nurseries for many species of marine fish, such as sea bream and eels, as well as providing feeding grounds for wading birds, including flamingos.
Sea salt production
Since ancient times, the lagoons have undergone gradual transformation. Today, they are completely man-made environments, with the bodies of water having been redesigned geometrically and their water flow regulated for sea salt production. There are two types of basin: salt pans and salt tables. Salt pans are shallow pre-concentration basins (30–50 cm deep) that are fed with seawater by pumping. They are drained in spring and autumn. Unlike algae, which are abundant and provide a plentiful food source for many birds and waders, aquatic plants are rare here. Following on from the salt pans are the salt tables, which are basins in which salt crystallises and is harvested. Salt is deposited there during the dry season thanks to the combined action of wind and heat. The highly saline nature of these seawater basins limits the flora to the red alga Dunaliella salina and the fauna to the small crustacean Artemia salina. The proliferation of these two species colours the water dark pink. Their high carotene content is also responsible for the pink colouring of flamingos' plumage, as Artemia salina forms the basis of their diet.
Ponds and reed beds
Ponds cover 25% of the Camargue region. The largest of these is the Vaccarès pond, which covers 6,500 hectares. The ponds are fed by fresh or low-salinity water from the 'roubines', which are irrigation canals from the Rhône. The ponds are shallow, with a maximum depth of two metres in the Vaccarès pond. The ponds play a major role in the Camargue ecosystem as they provide breeding and resting grounds for many migratory birds, as well as being a habitat for flamingos. Thousands of ducks come to rest there during the winter, and many birds, such as purple herons, come to breed there.
Freshwater marshes have dense vegetation. These marshes are mainly overgrown with reeds, which grow spontaneously around the edges of the ponds and sometimes cover them entirely. These areas are therefore called reed beds. One of the largest reed beds in Europe is located on the banks of the Scamandre ponds and has been present there for centuries, covering nearly 3,000 hectares. Cutting the reeds, known as 'sagne', which are used for the roofs of traditional houses, helps to maintain and rejuvenate the reed bed.
