La Reserve des Huttes

The Departmental Biological Reserve is made up of a group of wet marshes and forms a wide strip of land covering 146 hectares between Nalliers and Mouzeuil-Saint-Martin. It features all the environments typical of wet marshes: ditches and canals, floodplain and "terrée" grasslands interspersed with copses, hedgerows and dense coppice, dotted with paths and grassy slopes.

A witness to the history of the Marais Poitevin, this reserve has been shaped by man over the centuries. Water is the essential element that gives structure to this spacious landscape where plenitude reigns. Once home to the local inhabitants, the Huttiers, but also a place where firewood was produced, this natural area is now home to a rare variety of flora and fauna.

The result of a fragile balance between land and water, the wet marsh is a veritable sanctuary for numerous animal species, some of which are now threatened. Close to the Baie de l'Aiguillon and the winding course of the Sèvre Niortaise, the Réserve Biologique Départementale is home to the discreet European otter and the genet. The area is also home to the purple heron, the green-winged teal, the European oriole, the buzzard and the black kite. There are also many protected insects, such as the Alpine rosalia and the great peacock.