The Lincolnshire Bird Club

Sorry for being a bit late posting......

Spent five hours watching the wader roost. Including Lapwing on the wetland fields we (Bob Pacey and I) had 19 species but one (Green Sand) was heard only while we were in the hide.
Some counts:
1200 Redshank (accurate - counted as they left)
265 Turnstones (accurate)
61 Ringed Plovers (accurate)
8000 Knot (estimated)
4000 Dunlin (estimated)
11 Whimbrel (roosted on posts on the saltmarsh)
Plus single Grey Plover, Greenshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Avocet, Sanderling, LRP (juv) and Curlew Sandpiper. Two Bar-tailed Godwits. Uncounted Oystercatchers and Curlews and a few Golden Plovers that apeared as the tide started to go out.

Apart from waders...
3 Brent Geese
1 Barnacle Goose
2 juv Granada Geese
20 Little Egrets (counted as far as Cut End)
Three broods of Tufted Ducks along the channel behind the sea wall south (6, 8 and 8 again)
6+ Yellow Wagtails
1 juv Wheatear

Cheers
Steve

When is the best time and what is the best position to see a wader roost?

The best roosts are always on the highest tides of the cycle, normally around the full moon period. At Freiston you really need a high tide of 7 metres or more - this covers all the saltmarsh and forces the waders to roost on the other side of the seawall, either on fields or on places like Freiston lagoon.

They have a tide chart in the carpark at Freiston RSPB or you can find tide times online or presumably in the Boston local paper.

Part of the thrill of roosting waders is watching them gathering - maybe from two or even three hours before high tide. Then you get the spectacle of the swirling clouds condensing into dense carpets on the shingle islands for a few hours before suddenly leaving again as the tide drops and exposes the estuary again. That is the best stage to try and count them.

At Freiston the hide is great and so is the bench half way along the bank on the east side.

I hope this is useful Katherine.

Steve