Every Spring . . .
Migratory Shore Birds Stop to Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs Along the Delaware Bay Beaches Before Continuing Their Arduous Flight North
Throughout the year Delaware's ocean and bay beaches provide some of the best birdwatching experiences on the Mid-Atlantic Coast, but spring and fall migratory seasons attract thousands of bird enthusiasts hoping to see birds on the endangered species list. One of the most remarkable of those birds is the Calidris canutus rufa, commonly called the red knot shorebird.
About the size of a robin, red knot shorebirds travel more than 9300 miles from South America to North America, stopping over for two weeks along the Delaware Bay beaches to feed on the translucent green eggs being laid by the horseshoe crabs (see last week's post below). Then the red knots continue migrating north to the Canadian Arctic to breed.
Little is known about the juvenile red knots after they leave the Arctic until they return to the Delaware Bay two years later. In 2006, because of declining red knot populations, the species was named a candidate for the endangered species list. A decision should be announced later this year. Scientists believe the health and vitality of the birds is directly related to their refueling stopover on the Delaware Bay. The eggs of the horseshoe crabs provide valuable fat reserves for the birds' long flight north and contributes to the health of the new Arctic hatchlings. One reason their numbers may have dropped before 2006 may have been because of overfishing of the crabs, reducing the numbers of eggs for the shore birds to eat. New regulations now limit the number of crabs permitted to be taken and the time period in which they may be trapped.
Adult shorebirds have begun arriving at the Delaware Beaches and the next two weeks will provide great birdwatching, especially at these bay beaches and wildlife reserves: Bombay Hook, Port Mahon Beach, Kitts Hummock, Ted Harvey Wildlife Area, Bowers Beach, South Bowers Beach, Slaughter Beach, Fowlers Beach, and Broadkill Beach.