La Plagne forest

Forest land : a "green lung" of extraordinary richness for both the flora and the fauna that live between the undergrowth and the treetops.

 

The guardians of the forest

Watching & acting: The ONF

Nearly 25% of La Plagne consists of communal forest land (3500 hectares, the equivalent of the Bois de Vincennes and the woods at Disneyland Paris combined!), to which we can add the many privately-owned forests that are harder to estimate but which double this surface.
For several years now, in addition to its traditional missions, the ONF (National Forestry Commission) has been carrying out a vigilant health watch because of global warming. The Tarentaise forest -including the area of La Plagne – is doing well, which is fortunate because this is far from being the case of all of France’s forests. To observe the signs of this good health in La Plagne, you must go into the forest and look down at the ground.

Far from being as ordinary as it might seem, the ground is actually one of the best indicators of the state of the forest. Thanks to sectors that are hard to get to, the preserved undergrowth is full of life: a permanent virtuous and regenerative cycle between the earth and a whole “Microcosmos"-style universe that flourishes in the humus. In order to prevent the dramatic events that are observed elsewhere in France, like the disappearance of certain species, the ONF is part of a coherent and preventive proactive movement: forest maintenance, checking and managing of cohabitation between the different users (tourism, farming, etc.), diversification of tree species, numerous new plants and an ongoing collaboration with the Environmental Observatory

The winter season does not put a stop to the ONF’s activity, indeed far from it. The staff concentrate on surveillance and monitoring of the forest, including a survey of avalanches. Work is also carried out on implementing future projects.

Véronique de Righi, ONF regional manager for the Moutiers Territorial Unit

"In La Plagne, projects flourish regularly. We work with the SAP, which has a policy of reforestation and reducing the number of pylons (253 pylons removed since 2006)."

Moving species for better protection: the Environmental Observatory

Both discreet and scientifically rigorous, the actions of the Environmental Observatory, created in 2014 by the SAP (Société d'Aménagement de la Plagne- the ski lift company) are concretely implemented in the field. Amongst other things, these include moving species ahead of development projects.

This is the case, for example, of the Solitaire butterfly and its host plant, the marsh cranberry. In concrete terms, specialist ecologists come to the site before the work commences to check for the presence of butterflies in the form of eggs or caterpillars. If they find them, they move them to a favourable location away from the worksite. Once this has been done, the host plants (on which the butterflies lay their eggs and develop) can also be moved away from the worksite. The aim of the operation is to preserve an equivalent "habitable" surface for that species of butterfly so as not to endanger the survival of the fragile insect.

Secret forest

Remarkable habitats to discover with a guide

La Plagne has several protected sectors that shelter fauna and flora that are both exceptional and endemic. Some of these sectors can be visited during guided hikes. The guides play a fundamental role in ensuring good cohabitation between hikers and the forest. They are the guarantee of good practices, such as staying on the paths, walking in single file and respecting the calm of the site…

Three examples of remarkable habitats:

- Mont-Saint-Jacques where the timid black grouse lives year round. In winter, this pretty gamebird (also called a ‘blackgame’) builds… an igloo. However, if it is disturbed by skiers, the bird leaves its winter home and does not survive. The black grouse is not a protected species, but it is an "umbrella" species that other species depend on directly to survive. An ecosystem with a fragile balance that absolutely must be preserved.

- wetlands that are nearly invisible if you are not attentive, can be found almost everywhere in La Plagne, in or close to the ski area: they are sensitive natural environments that are subject to regular ecological diagnoses. Around 120 hectares can be found in La Plagne, including Carella plateau next to the chairlift, or the Lac Noir peat bog in the Montchavin-Les Coches sector.

- another example of a remarkable habitat is the stone pine grove on gypsum, where the renewal of the stone pine only comes about because of the absent-mindedness of the speckled nutcracker which forgets where it has hidden its seeds. A natural treasure in the heart of the ski area, 2000 m above sea level, which can be visited on snowshoes.

Did you know?

Protected species:

- Lady’s Slipper flower

- ibex

- Bechstein’s bat

- most of the avifauna (i.e. the birds), from chickadees to birds of prey

 

Unprotected species:

- Edelweiss

- Marmots

- Black grouse

- Bovids, including chamois

- Wild boar

 

“La cembraie”, miracle of nature

Its characteristic landscape is shaped by hundreds of sinkholes where Swiss pines and larch trees grow. 12 ha of extremely rare geological and natural formations in the ski area. The result of an equation that is almost unique worldwide, this ecosystem combines gypsum soil and an equilibrium that rests on the delicate wings of a specific bird.

The Swiss stone pine, La Plagne’s sacred pine tree

In one of France’s highest forests, Swiss stone pines grow on the gypsum-rich rock itself, a limestone rock that is highly soluble in water.

‘Gypsum is a little like sugar! The Swiss stone pine’s main characteristic compared to other pine trees is that its needles are in groups of five. It is a tree that can survive to temperatures of -43°C. It also adapts its growing season by flowering (when the sap rises in the tree) later, to prevent the sap from freezing which would cause the tree to burst open.’
Jean-Luc Lecoq, a former forest ranger at the ONF

The spotted nutcracker as the keystone

The regeneration of the forest is brought about by its provisions of Swiss pine seeds. The spotted nutcracker hides the seeds then searches them out during the winter. Since it is not always successful in its treasure hunt, some are left behind that can then germinate.

‘The spotted nutcracker is quite easy to spot because it is a dark-coloured bird with small white spots over its body. It feeds on seeds that it finds in Swiss pine cones. It belongs to the crow family, so it has a long beak that it uses to collect a whole pine cone which it sets down on a tree stump and pecks to extract the seeds. It is quite noisy and can be heard in autumn. The seeds are hidden over an area of several kilometres as a reserve for the winter. The birds forget where they have hidden about 20% of them, which is enough to repopulate the forest with new shoots!’
Jules Jouaux, animal photographer in La Plagne

A fragile balance and a stealthy visit, in summer and winter

Its situation in the middle of the ski runs requires our full attention to guarantee its sustainability and the harmony of the ecosystem. The area is ZNIEFF listed (Natural Area of special Ecological, Faunistic or Floristic Interest) but this does not mean that it is an impenetrable santuary. A hike in summer or a snowshoe walk in winter is really the only way to discover all its secrets. Going with a guide prevents erosion of the site and noise that can endanger the survival of its inhabitants (foxes, squirrels, ermines, mountain hares and black grouses). The guides can reveal the secrets of the animal tracks in the snow and are keen to make visitors aware of this exceptional ecosystem.

‘Skis can cut the heads off the young shoots. It is important to respect this unique natural site’
Philippe Vanniu, mountain guide in La Plagne

Due to its exceptional nature on a national and even a European scale, La Plagne’s Swiss pine grove on gypsum is currently, in 2025, the subject of an initiative that is part of the national strategy for Protected Areas in 2030. It will be a collaborative approach (the DDT, the commune of La Plagne Tarentaise, the Syndicat Intercommunal de la Grande Plagne, the Société d'Aménagement de La Plagne, the Office de Tourisme de la Grande Plagne, the Office National des Forêts, the Vivre en Tarentaise association, the Parc National de la Vanoise), organised in successive stages to draw up a detailed inventory and allow a tool adapted to the preservation of this unique natural environment to be put in place.

Key information

- 2: the number of Swiss pine groves in Europe, including the one in La Plagne
- 2,300 m: the altitude of the Swiss pine grove, in the heart of the ski area, in one of France’s highest forests
- 12 ha: surface area of La Plagne’s Swiss pine grove
- 400 years old: age of some of the trees
- classified as a remarkable natural site