This is why you are seeing more horseshoe crabs stranded on the beach than in previous years. Most do not wash up on the beach, but come ashore to spawn and the waves turn them over stranding them on the beach making them vulnerable to predators. (shore birds, raccoons etc.)

Horseshoe crabs lay their eggs between the high and low tide marks. This helps to keep the eggs moist until they hatch. The shore birds you see feasting on the beach are most likely eating the eggs although shorebirds will sometimes be seen feasting on the overturned horseshoe crabs too.

Turning over horseshoe crabs and helping them back into the water, while in the big picture won’t make much of a difference, to the individual horseshoe crab it could mean the difference between life and death. While some of them would probably be able right themselves and get back to the water when the tide comes in, many could die from dehydration and predators before that happens. If it makes you feel better, by all means help them. I always try to help an animal in distress as long as it’s safe and feasible.

horseshoe crabs coming to shore to spawn

This is the time of year when the weather gets nice and love is in the air in Delaware. At least for the horseshoe crabs.

From now until about the middle of June the Delaware bay area beaches will be covered with horseshoe crabs as they come to spawn as they have done for thousands of years.

Delaware bay area beaches have more horseshoe crabs by far then any other place on the east coast. The horseshoe crabs love Delaware’s quiet protected beaches to lay their eggs by the millions.

This is also the time of year that the horseshoe crab sensus will be taken of the horseshoe crabs to try to get an estimate of the current population of horseshoe crabs and whether conservation efforts over the last decade is helping these ancient creatures to maintain a healthy population.

If you’ve never seen this, this is something that you should experience.

Also the Horseshoe Crab/Shorebird Festival starts this Friday and runs through Sunday  on the Broadkill River at the Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge  in Milton, Delaware. You can enjoy barbecue, tours of the refuge and entertainment while learning about the shore bird and horseshoe crab connection. If you want to come join the festivities you can get times and more information by visiting  www.retiretomilton.com

One of the events of the season is the annual horseshoe crab sensus that will be conducted from Maine to Florida by numorous organizations. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the restrictions that many of the states have placed on horseshoe crab harvesting has helped the horseshoe crab population to rebound from it’s population dip in the last couple of decades.