Fylde Coast waders

Our name for swirling flocks of waders

Bird-whirlies

Birds take flight

We went out to meet the high tide
(14 April/1314hrs/8.51m)
to be greeted by hundreds of waders
gathering at the water’s edge
as the incoming tide pushed forwards

Meeting the incoming tide

Ribbons of birds twisted and turned
above a gentle Irish Sea
How they don’t crash into each other
is a mystery
They land en masse,
peck for tiny morsels,
then take-off again and again

Bird-whirlie

Amazing spectacle

A ribbon of birds

Whirring wings and constant chattering they take flight as one
A breath-taking spectacle

Mass take-off

Dunlin, knot, ringed plovers, redshank
are often found in each other’s company

It’s the breeding season
which helps identification (a bit!)
Dunlin are easy to spot
with their little charred black bellies

Spot the dunlin

Birds follow the receding tide

River Ribble channel markers

These fascinating ironworks
have been marking the
River Ribble deep-water channel
since the 1880s

Channel marker – 11.5 metres

Channel marker 8-11.5m

Channel marker – 11m

Barnacle-clad,
wrapped in fishing nets and floats
they are a live art installation
along the River Ribble

A barnacled 4 metres

Fishing nets, barnacles, mussels, and buoys

Fishing nets and buoys

The training walls are visible at low water

Channel marker

It’s hard to believe
that the channel markers
are completely submerged
during violent high tides

These days
we don’t see paddle steamers
or commercial boats
chugging down the river
Just a fisherman or two and
Lytham’s RNLI out on exercise

Coming in with the tide – and a friendly wave for the snapshot taker!

RNLI D-class on exercise – River Ribble to the Irish Sea

I love this amazing river,
that starts as a little trickle
at the Ribble Viaduct in Yorkshire
and eventually gathers force
and gushes into the Irish Sea

There’s heaps
of fascinating historical
and general information
about the River Ribble
and Preston Docks