Regional nature reserve: La Massonne

The La Massonne regional nature reserve has a diversity of natural habitats and flora, from marshes to woodlands to moors. It is a sector with very high biological stakes.
The Massonne Nature Reserve, located at the western edge of the Brouage marshes in Charente-Maritime, spans the communes of La Gripperie-Saint-Symphorien and Saint-Sornin. This former maritime gulf has been shaped since antiquity for salt marsh exploitation and is now home to wet meadows and heathlands. The soils support remarkable biodiversity, with 600 plant species, including 28 rare ones. The fauna is equally diverse, featuring species like the pitchou warbler, European otter, and various insects. The reserve shelters rare species such as Siberian iris and the succisa fritillary, making it an exceptional ecological site.