Colin says: North End Marsh: Along the sheltered east coast of Walney Island saltmarshes have developed forming North End Marsh (see photo), Tummer Hill Marsh, Wylock Marsh, and Haws Bed Marsh. On their seaward sides they are flanked by sandbanks and mudbanks. Saltmarsh is a unique community of salt tolerant plants that colonise mud and sand flats, trapping and stabilising the sediment, allowing other plants to grow. The saltmarsh provides grazing for sheep and cattle and attracts thousands of overwintering wildfowl. Intertidal mudflats typically occour at the head of nearby river estuaries. The reduced salinity results in slightly different communities of animals such as grazing mud snails and eelgrass. Large eelgrass beds are present in the Walney Channel and around Foulney Island, the only place in north west England where this intertidal flowering plant occurs.
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