Photographers in west Norfolk have captured stunning images of one of the UK's most exhilarating wildlife spectacles. 

Hundreds of thousands of wading birds put on an incredible, swarming show above the eastern shores of The Wash at RSPB Snettisham earlier this week.

Thousands of waders take to the sky (Image: DJS Photographic Images) Known as Snettisham Spectacles, the Attenborough-worthy displays are one of the top highlights of the birding calendar.

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They take place on rare occasions across summer and autumn when vast flocks of knots, dunlin and oystercatchers are pushed off the mudflats by the fast incoming tide, creating what RSPB Snettisham describes as "an exhilarating commotion of thousands of wingbeats, excited calls and swirling flocks".

The fast incoming tide forces the birds off the mudflats (Image: Natalie Degg) Natalie Degg, 37, travelled from Nottingham with her friends to see the display for the first time: "We travelled down on Sunday night and stayed over in Heacham.

"We took full advantage of exploring the wildlife on offer in Norfolk but we feel we have only just scratched the surface.

An oystercatcher sits among a group of knots (Image: Alan Revel) "It was fantastic and we will be back for sure."

The majority of the birds that make up the displays are knots, with the area surrounding The Wash believed to host at least 90pc of the world's knot population during late summer and early autumn. 

A close-up of a knotA close-up of a knot (Image: Natalie Degg) At this time of year, the reserve is also home to pink-footed geese who spend the winter in Norfolk to avoid the harsh winter conditions of Iceland and Greenland where they have their breeding grounds. 

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At sunrise, another impressive sight is created when the geese leave the mudflats in huge flocks as they head inland to search for food. 

The birds create patterns similar to starling murmurations (Image: Natalie Degg) The RSPB publishes a Snettisham Spectacular guide each year, advising birdwatchers of the key dates the event is likely to happen.

This year there were around 19 spectaculars between February and November and the spectacle witnessed on Monday was the last of 2024.

To see the spectacle, there must be a very high tide of more than seven metres and daylight.