Snettisham Spectacular

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The Wash, on the eastern coast of England, is perhaps the most important area for waders in the UK. It is a vast intertidal mudflat with rich food supplies for waders, used both by UK waders and many over-wintering flocks from as far afield as North America. When the tides are the most extreme, the incoming waters force thousands of feeding waders off the mud flats to seek safety in the inland ponds.

As the water covers over the last of the mud flats, red knots, oystercatchers and a host of other waders are forced to take flight simultaneously, creating patterns akin to murmurations of starlings. When the Wash is home to wintering flocks the waders can number over 100,000 birds. This is the Snettisham Spectacular - all the waders in the Wash forced into flight at one time.

August 2026 the Wash was home to 33,000 red knot, nearly 10,000 oyster catchers and thousands of other waders: dunlin; ruff; ringed plover; and many others. With them were numerous geese, and the inevitable birds of prey including march harriers; peregrine falcons; and sparrow hawks. This page is the result of three days spent at RSPB Snettisham on the shoreline of the Wash.