Parc Montsouris

Parc Montsouris is a public park situated in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, on the left bank of the River Seine. It covers an area of fifteen hectares, and, similarily to Parc Monceau, it is modelled on the English gardens. The construction of the park was commissioned by Napoleon III and Baron Haussmann as part of a plan to expand the green areas of Paris.

To the south the park borders on the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (CIUP) area, to the north and east on residential flats, and to the west on the residential district of the Général Leclerc avenue. The central lake, located in the northeast part of the park, has a surface area of nearly one hectare. The park was originally called "moque souris" ("mock mice") because of the rodents inhabiting this area. After some time the name evolved into Montsouris.

The Parc Montsouris is often visited by the students from the adjacent Cité Universitaire. Apart from the central lake, in the lower section of the park you can find a tiny lake with an island in the middle which functions as a sanctuary for forty species of migratory birds like wild ducks, geese, herons, and other. On the shores of the lake one can often see the turtles, brought here from Florida, sunbathing on the stones.

The park is home to some 150 species of trees (such as Horse-Chestnuts, Common Yews, Cedars, Weeping beeches and Buttonwoods) and shrubs (including Spindles, Mahonias, Boxwoods, Aucubas and Tinus). In the park you can also find many sculptures of bronze and stone: a monument to General Jose de San Martin, the liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru, created by Van Peborgh, a sculpture called "Pureté" (Purity) by Costas Valsamis; the "Premier Frisson" (First Shiver) by René Baucour, a statue of Thomas Paine by Borglum, "La Mort du Lion" (The Death of the Lion) by Desca, "Drame au Désert" (Drama of the Desert) by Gardet, "Les Carriers ou Accident de la Mine" (The Quarry or Accident of the Mine) by Henri Bouchard, "Les Naufragés d'Etex" (The Castaways of Etex) by Singery and "Monument a la Mission du Colonel Flatters" by Singery.