Can anyone identify this tree please?

[Printemps]

Apart from the obvious oak, lime and silver birch trees I'm rubbish at tree identification, and am wondering whether anyone would know what this tree is: (it's buzzing with bees right now as the little yellow bell flowers start to open!)

[ConfusedRhubarb]

Hi Printemps
The flowers look a bit like elaeagnus, and the leaves are quite similar. Our elaeagnus is a variegated shrub which turned into a small tree, but the flowers are not at this time of year. Perhaps this is a relative?

[endymion]

It looks as if it might be a Strawberry Tree (Arbutus spp), but I'm fairly sure they flower later in the year although I'm not sure what they'd do in France.

[perkin]

Deffo not a strawberry tree - I have one in my back garden and the flowers are much different to those in the photos.
I've found the Natural History Museum tree identification key useful but it only covers UK trees. It's here if you want to give it a try - maybe your tree will be there?

[PAULW]

Could be an Urn Gum, Eucalyptus urnigera

[snohare]

Definitely not an urn gum, the leaves are not round enough, and the wrong colour as well. (Although some of them might be green, most would be grey.)
At a guess, given that the leaves look to be quite coarse and leathery (ie, stiff and with a thick, non glossy cuticle), and assuming that it is no more than about 10m in height, I would suggest it is one of the larger species of cotoneaster. So technically a shrub...? That would tie in with it being so popular with bees, too.

[rana]

Looks like some kind of laurel to me.