COVEHITHE SANDERLINGS

   Last week I drove down to Covehithe with the intention of walking up to Benacre broad to see if any waders were around but on the approach to the end of the lane and the cliff top path I found the way blocked by barbed wire which prevented any easy access along the path. I had heard that the Benacre estate which owns the land were making life difficult for walkers claiming that the footpath no longer existed due to cliff erosion but as long as I can remember there has always been a path along the top of the cliff which would gradually move inland as the sea claimed more of the cliff. The estate insists that access to Benacre broad should be from along the beach only which means walking in the opposite direction to Covehithe broad and then doubling back along the beach at the base of the cliffs. The only problem with this is that if the tide is coming in then there is the real danger of being trapped by it against the cliffs with no chance of escape. Because the water comes right up to the bottom of the cliffs at high tide drowning is a real possibility and I believe the estate is acting in a very dangerous way by trying to block the cliff top access and I wonder where they would stand legally if the unthinkable happened.

   Getting back to the day I decided against climbing over the barbed wire and instead walked along towards Covehithe broad where as I approached I could see many gulls and ducks sitting on the water. The tide was indeed very high making any access northward to Benacre broad impossible but it was retreating so I lingered around watching the birds on the broad hoping I could walk along the beach a bit later. Looking out towards the sea a decent swell allowed various gulls to fly down into the troughs and along the breaking waves making a nice sight to watch and it while doing this that I spotted a group of three birds flying close to the shore approaching me before sweeping past and alighting next to a small pool left by the retreating tide. Looking through the binoculars I could make out the mottled white plumage and realised that they were Sanderlings and because these birds are often very approachable I gradually made my way down to the pool.

   Sanderlings are a small energetic wader that seem to be constantly on the go but at the same time can be very confiding. They are a long distant migrants that breed in the high arctic on the land closest to the North pole and then move in the winter to South America, South Africa and Australia. They are found mainly on sandy beaches where they feed on insects and shrimps and prior to migration they really pile on the weight to enable them to sometimes fly 5,000 km non stop.

   Creeping down to the edge of the pool I positioned myself up from the direction the birds were walking and waited as they approached me. I was amazed as they came within 20 feet of me and carried on feeding happily as I snapped away and even stayed as dog walkers came along the beach. The final sequence of four shots here were taken as one of the birds had a bit of a wash in the tide pool.