Rame circuit (no. 10)

In ancient times, the Durance valley was a key communication corridor. Rama was a kind of staging post on the Roman road. In the Middle Ages, Rama was a small town with a noble's château. But the village was devastated by the capriciousness of the Durance and the Biaysse rivers on numerous occasions and the inhabitants gradually deserted the site, moving to neighbouring villages. The attachment of the parish of Rame to that of La Roche in 1446 is indicative of this decline.

À l’époque des grandes glaciations, l’énorme glacier de la Durance a creusé son lit sur une épaisseur de plus de 200 m de haut. Le glacier de la vallée de Freissinières affluait à la surface de ce glacier. Leur fonte a laissé une grosse “marche d’escalier” nommée gradin de confluence. La Biaysse rejoignant la Durance, a peu à peu creusé ce gradin, d’abord en tant que torrent sous glaciaire puis après la fonte du glacier.

The history of plants is fascinating. A large number of messicole plants (those associated with crops), like the poppy and the cornflower, arrived from the Mediterranean basin or the Middle East as seeds, mixed with cereal seeds, as far back as the very first trading activity in prehistory. Unfortunately, herbicides have led to their virtual disappearance and mountain farming has become their last refuge. And so the summer pheasant's-eye, with its splendid but discreet flowers, still grows here.

Aux environs du gouffre, vit le grand-duc, le plus grand hibou d’Europe. Il niche sur des vires dans les falaises mais a un domaine vital très grand, chassant aussi bien des gros insectes que des serpents, des campagnols, des lièvres… Il est hélas très sensible au dérangement et a déjà déserté moult parois équipées maintenant de voies d’escalade ou de via ferrata et est victime de collisions dans les lignes électriques. 

This species of grasshopper favours islands of gravel, sand banks, and the edges of meandering mountain streams. These habitats are increasingly rare because rivers have been reworked, dammed up or dredged for gravel extraction. So this grasshopper, along with several others, has become critically endangered. The Durance population is one of the few remaining populations in Europe.

They first appear in the Pays des Écrins from late February, so it's true to say that they don't bring the spring! Brown with a beige underside, as their name suggests they nest on crags and cliffs. It is the most common species of swallow in the mountains and is present up to an altitude of 2,500 metres. They are partially migratory, overwintering in the south of France where they join resident colonies.

This large toad only lives in the ponds during the spawning season, leaving its long strings of toad spawn in the water. So here in the artificial Lac de Rama it has found a habitat to ensure its survival. After the spawning season, it returns to the cool, wooded areas where it hunts small invertebrates at night and spends the day hiding underneath wood or stones or in underground crevices. In hibernates in cavities, protected from freezing temperatures.