Autumn in Cumbria ... Wader time ! ...

 Always an exciting time of year ... and one source of that excitement is the promise of waders ... 

Ten days ago groups of Dunlin were on the move at Bowness Railings on the rising tide ... a flock of thirty Dunlin dropped in on the receding shingle along with a single juvenile Little Stint ... it proceeded to roost straight away near to a moulting Dunlin and two juvenile Ringed Plovers ...

... as the water rose it gave nice views showing those rufous fringes to the dark centred tertials and the relatively long primary projection ... the split supercilium showing better at some angles than at others ...

... and the white mantle stripes showing here ...

Curlew Sandpipers have not always been very easy to find on the Solway in recent years but these two juveniles lingered on the pools to the west of Port Carlisle harbour a few days later on a very murky drizzly afternoon ... nevertheless they were good to see with their lovely peachy tinted upper breasts ...

But venturing into more exotic species, this group of Redshanks at Old Anthorn kept company with the regular Long-billed Dowitcher ... the roosting bird showed its greenish legs contrasting with those of the Redshanks as two Little Egrets walked by ... the supercilium also just visible ... the plain dark centres to the tertials also contrasted with the look of the nearby Redshank ...

... in flight the thin white trailing edge to the wing showed well ...

... and as it caught up with the Redshank the thin white line up the back stood out ...