Purple Sandpipers at Southsea: Ecology and vulnerability to sea-level rise and coastal engineering

Using records from Hampshire Ornithological Society, we constructed an energy budget for Purple Sandpipers (Calidris maritima) at Southsea Castle through the tide cycle. We then compared this model to our own field observations. We then use the activity budget as the basis for simulating Purple Sandpiper foraging under a range of sea-level rise scenarios. This report includes a general discussion of the natural history of this population, as well as exploring how coastal engineering could provide a solution to the threat of sea-level rise by providing new habitat.