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Delaware halts 2017 horseshoe crab harvest

animalia-life.com

Delawareans won’t be able to harvest any more male horseshoe crabs for the rest of the year, now that the state has reached its quota.

 

 

 

The Division of Fish & Wildlife allowed for 162,100 horseshoe crabs to be harvested this year.

 

They closed the fishery Thursday.

 

Some watermen and women harvest horseshoe crabs to use as bait for conch and American eel.

 

The creatures’ bright blue blood has been used in medical testing and research.

 

They’re also an important food source for migrating shorebirds like red knots. Red knots have been considered threatened, but an abundant horseshoe crab population brings hope the red knot population will  rebound .

 

Harvest of female horseshoe crabs is always prohibited in order to protect their spawning populations. Typically, one female exists per every three males. 

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