Horseshoe Crab and Shorebirds Fact Sheet

• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, Inc. 2002
• Subjects: animals; birds; community awareness; ecosystems; habitats; rivers; water resources; shorebirds; horseshoe crabs; Arctic
• Online Access: http://www.greentreks.org/delawareestuary/freestuff.htm; http://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.1/NJEDL.Pamphlet.n3529

The Delaware Estuary is home to thousands of animal species, including the world's largest population of horseshoe crabs. At the same time the horseshoe crabs are beginning to lay their eggs in Delaware Bay, thousands of shorebirds are traveling northward from South America en route to their breeding grounds in the arctic. The shorebirds stop in the Delaware Estuary to feed on the horseshoe crab eggs. The interrelationship of the shorebird and horseshoe crab can be negatively affected by habitat loss, a loss of coastal wetlands due to increased development, erosion, a rise in sea level, climatic changes, and a decline in horseshoe crab population due to commercial harvesting. This factsheet discusses the connection between the species and our stewardship responsibilities for the Estuary. Funding for this fact sheet was provided by U.S. EPA, Region III.