Thursday, March 27, 2008

Knots and Crabs

A reporter asked me today when Red Knots will be returning, a question we'll be hearing more and more of as spring proceeds. The answer is that a few actually winter locally but the first migrants will appear in mid-late April, with a peak in late May.

Happily, they will return to a protected food source, at least in NJ, since Governor Corzine signed the bill banning horseshoe crab harvest in NJ this week. NJAS President Tom Gilmore's remarks at the signing ceremony stressed that this has been a long, long fight, as environmental battles so often are, and involved many organizations - organizations that depend on the support of their members, so this victory belongs to many people - probably including nearly everyone who reads this web site, so thanks! The role of birding and ecotourism in southern NJ also played a very key and specific role in getting legislative support, enabling the bill to reach the Governor's desk.

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