Mud ripples

Today I did the last of my Winter Bird Atlas visits for November/December this year. The location is south of Flookborough on the edge of Morecambe Bay. I will have to do second visits in January/February. It was another morning of bright sunshine, frosty after a clear night, but positively balmy at -1 C after what we've experienced in recent weeks.

The main highlight this morning was the enormous flock of waders far out on the mudflats feeding at low tide. There were thousands of dunlin and knot, and counting was very tricky.

I took this picture of the patterns in the hard estuarine sediment as I ventured out onto the mud. The patterning changes as you go further offshore, become more dimpled than ridgey, while the softer mud is covered with a tracery of bird footprints.

Attached is a further link to one of the late afternoon photographs taken yesterday. It's maybe worth a look if you have time, showing a long, linear pink cloud reflected in the Kent estuary with Whitbarrow beyond.