Changing tides

Traditionally oystercatchers breed in an unstable habitat, the saltmarshes. During winter the seawater washes away formerly used nesting spots, while somewhere else new suitable breeding area is formed. But human activities are interfering with this ongoing process. Gas extraction lowers the ground level and human induced climate change results in higher sea levels and more extreme weather events. During the breeding season the nests are not safe anymore. At high tide eggs are flushed away like pingpong balls and when the water level drops again the shores are covered with plastics. 

I moulded the plastic waste into eggshapes. These were photographed during the oystercatcher breeding season of 2019 in their empty nest cups.