ABOUT THE SITE
The ideal case study is the Petitcodiac river tidal bore, which, as with the surrounding ecosystem, was all but destroyed by the construction of the Moncton causeway in 1968. Yet prior to this event, the bore had been an excellent source of tourism, and had bought fame to the river worldwide. By looking at, and understanding, the other tidal bores around the world, the Petitcodiac Riverkeepers have been able to show the importance of restoring the Petitcodiac river to reintroduce the strong tidal bore, and help the recovery of the wildlife.
But, tidal bores are not just about tourism. They also have fascinating histories. Cultures living around tidal estuaries learnt to live with the bore, and even revered it as a source of spiritual fertility. The Chinese still gather to worship the Dragon today, although they no longer send in suicidal surfers. On the Severn, myths are abound regarding the Druid's worship of Sabrina the goddess of the Severn riding her chariot in the wild's of the bore. The Petitcodiac has the tale of the conflict between the giant Lobster and the Eel, an animism based on the daily surge of the tidal bore.
Of course, the most fascinating question to ask is how many bores are there in the world? In fact, it was the Catalog of Worldwide Tidal Bores, compiled by Susan Bartsch-Winkler and David K Lynch, that first inspired the foundation of the TBRS. The report cited sixty seven localities that had tidal bores. Fresh reports are being prepared, and some accounts claim more than a hundred tidal bores. It is only through the catalogue that a realistic figure can be calculated. While some scientific reports are not readily available to the public, we hope that through this site, we can create a common source for the cataloguing of tidal bores, to as accurate and factual a detail as possible.
The Tidal Bore Research Society website has been created as a source for information on tidal bores around the world. Whether it be contributions to the site, or direct links to interesting factual pages sited elsewhere, the intention is to create a direct link to all the available information worldwide on tidal bores. Our aim is to make information relating to tidal bores readily available at the touch of a button to everyone. This may help raise general awareness of both the dangers and the magnificent beauty of one of the Earth's great natural wonders.
NAVIGATING THE SITE
The site is designed around the catalogue, but while information is being added, we have created a brief tour, which includes our top ten tidal bores. Selecting any of these bores or any available bore in the catalogue, will take you to the main index page for that bore. The information includes a brief introduction, a table of statistics, maps and links to contribution pages, or other sites around the web. Click on the logo at the top at anytime to return to the home page, and use the green arrows on its left and right to skip to the previous, or next, page in the catalogue. Green arrows within the page also link to the comparison table of tidal bores and the photo plates index. All other hyperlinks connecting the pages are in green text.
The contributions page is designed as a form which can be completed with any information you wish to supply. Certain fields must be entered and drop down boxes are supplied to select the country where the bore in question occurs. All contributors will be credited for the information they supply in the contributors page.
REPRODUCING THE SITE
All information given in these pages is copyrighted to the Tidal Bore Research Society, unless stated. None of the narrative or images may be reproduced for profitable purposes. The information is desgined as a source of learning, and the information is available for educational purposes only. Credits are given with all photographs, either directly, or in the Photo Plates Index, and none of the images on the site may be reproduced without prior permission.
