Baie de Somme (''Bay of the Somme'' or ''Somme Bay'') is a large estuary in the

Hauts-de-France Hauts-de-France (; pcd, Heuts-d'Franche; , also ''Upper France'') is the northernmost Regions of France, region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its Prefectu ...

region of France. The bay drains six rivers into the English Channel, principally the

River Somme The Somme ( , , ) is a river in Picardy, northern France. The river is in length, from its source in the high ground of the former at Fonsomme near Saint-Quentin, to the Bay of the Somme, in the English Channel. It lies in the geological ...

, and covers a total area of . The bay is noted for its ornithological richness, as well as being a major tourist attraction. When the tide is out, the Baie is characterized by wide, flat areas of marsh and sand, from which the delicacy of

glasswort The glassworts are various succulent, annual halophytic plants, that is, plants that thrive in saline environments, such as seacoasts and salt marshes. The original English glasswort plants belong to the genus ''Salicornia'', but today the glass ...

(locally:''salicornes'') are collected. Small ponds, dug into the marshes and filled with fake plastic ducks, are used to attract migratory birds for hunting. As the tide rises the bay fills, during which time numerous working, leisure and tourist boats cross between the surrounding villages. The largest towns on the bay are Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, Le Crotoy, Cayeux-sur-Mer and, a few miles inland of the bay,

Noyelles-sur-Mer Noyelles-sur-Mer (, literally ''Noyelles on Sea'') is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Noyelles-sur-Mer is situated on the coast, facing the English Channel, on the D11 and D40 junction, some ...

. Other smaller towns such as Le Hourdel,

Le Tréport Le Tréport () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in Normandy, France. Geography A small fishing port and light industrial town situated in the Pays de Caux, some northeast of Dieppe at the junction of the D 940, the D 78 and th ...

, or

Mers-les-Bains Mers-les-Bains () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The commune is situated on the D1015 road, some west of Abbeville, Mers-les-Bains faces the English Channel near the mouth of the river ...

are sparsely located around the region. These towns are popular tourist destinations, and are connected together by the preserved

steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...

railway line, the Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme. Several of the towns together form the Communauté d'agglomération de la Baie de Somme. The Bay of Somme is the habitat of multiple fauna and flora species, the most famous being probably the Grey seal and the Harbor seal, locally referred as "phoque veau-marin". Its population can be estimated at around 650 to 700 individuals living in the bay, whereas the Grey seal has a smaller population of around 350 individuals.

References

Picardy Marshes of France Bays of Metropolitan France English Channel Salt marshes Ramsar sites in Metropolitan France {{Somme-geo-stub