From rocky shores to mudflats, and saltmarshes to sandy beaches, the Forth's coast is a magnet for wildlife.
There are over 50 miles of shoreline within the Inner Forth area, which means there are loads of places where you can find a whole range of wildlife that enjoys coastal habitats. These include rocky shores, sandy beaches, saltmarshes, mudflats and river banks. The Forth Estuary is internationally important for the thousands of wildfowl and waders, like pink-footed geese and curlew, that come here, and you can get great views from places like Torryburn, Bo'ness and Blackness. Grey seals sometimes make it all the way up the river as far as the Devon at Cambus, and even Stirling Old Bridge. Click on the tiles to find out more about some of the wildlife that makes this place so special.
There are over 50 miles of shoreline within the Inner Forth area, which means there are loads of places where you can find a whole range of wildlife that enjoys coastal habitats. These include rocky shores, sandy beaches, saltmarshes, mudflats and river banks. The Forth Estuary is internationally important for the thousands of wildfowl and waders, like pink-footed geese and curlew, that come here, and you can get great views from places like Torryburn, Bo'ness and Blackness. Grey seals sometimes make it all the way up the river as far as the Devon at Cambus, and even Stirling Old Bridge. Click on the tiles to find out more about some of the wildlife that makes this place so special.
Barnacle
When: All year round
Shelduck
When: All year round
Dunlin
When: Winter
Grey seal
When: All year round
Bladder wrack
When: All year round
Pink-footed goose
When: Autumn & Winter
Hermit crab
When: all year
Sea aster
When: July - October
Oystercatcher
When: All year round; inland in spring and summer; on coasts in autumn and winter
Curlew
When: Winter along the estuaries and mudflats, summer on moorlands and higher ground