On May 22, we completed the first boat and ground count of NJ beaches, and the count topped last year’s by at least 8000 knots, coming in at 22,107 red knots. In 2019 we counted over 30,000 red knots, but after the bay’s crab spawn failed to materialize in May 2020, the number crashed to 19,000, then to a disastrous 6000 in 2021. Last year the knot numbers bumped to 12,000, giving us hope for the stopover. The increase to 24,000 is good news that tells us a lot.
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horseshoe crab
USGS and ASMFC statisticians ignore the aerial ground count estimates as they also ignore the low egg densities in order to support their untested models that justify the death of too many horseshoe crabs.
We are now reaping the results of the agency-led double assault on the Delaware Bay stopover.
Previous Update Dear Team, The cold weather has been borderline…
The Shorebird Project remains committed to a scientific principle of getting to the truth of the condition of the bay stopover
The following six posts describe the progress of NJ’s Delaware Bay Shorebird Stopover Project.