The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has decided to extend a more than decade-old ban on bait harvesting female horseshoe crabs in the Delaware Bay.
“The decision to once again protect female horseshoe crabs from the bait harvest offers another reprieve for Delaware Bay,” New Jersey Audubon Vice President of Research and Monitoring David Mizrahi said in a statement. “It will pay dividends for the greater ecosystem, especially for red knots and other migratory shorebirds.”
The commission was considering a proposal to allow a harvest of 175,000 female crabs in 2025, but ultimately decided against it out of concern for how the harvest would impact the red knot, a shorebird listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The birds rely on horseshoe crab eggs as an important food source on their migratory journey.
“The commission made the right decision by declining to allow a bait harvest of female horseshoe crabs in Delaware Bay next year,” Earthjustice Biodiversity Defense Program Senior Attorney Ben Levitan said in a statement. “This decision will give red knots and other shorebirds that utilize Delaware Bay a fighting chance at survival and recovery. But the status of red knots remains precarious, and the commission should not be considering the risky recommendations of its flawed computer model year after year.”
Horseshoe crabs are frequently harvested for their blood, which is valued in the pharmaceutical industry for its ability to clot when exposed to bacterial toxins during biomedical testing. The crabs are also harvested as bait, largely for the eel and whelk fisheries.
Harvest of male horseshoe crabs in the Delaware Bay will continue in 2025, and the commission increased Maryland and Virginia’s respective male harvest quota to make up for the lost harvest of female crabs, which are larger. Delaware and New Jersey each have a quota of 173,014 male crabs for 2025, while Maryland and Virginia have quotas of 255,980 and 81,331, respectively.
According to conservation groups, the commission continues to periodically reconsider the ban on female horseshoe crab harvesting due to a flawed computer model. The commission acknowledged the issue in its release, noting that a small group of stakeholders have recommended establishing an “interim solution to maintain male-only harvest” while the ARM Framework the commission relies on is updated.
However, future male harvests could also be under threat. In February, 23 conservation organizations petitioned NOAA Fisheries to have horseshoe crabs listed as endangered under the ESA. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, the horseshoe crab population in Delaware Bay has plummeted by two-thirds over the last 30 years.
“We’re wiping out one of the world’s oldest and toughest creatures,” Center for Biological Diversity Senior Scientist Will Harlan said. “These living fossils urgently need Endangered Species Act protection. Horseshoe crabs have saved countless human lives, and now we should return the favor.”
NOAA Fisheries has yet to issue its 90-day finding on the petition, which was submitted in February.
Conservationists have promoted the use of synthetic alternatives for horseshoe crab blood, which are already being adopted in Europe.
“The continued reliance on horseshoe crab blood by pharmaceutical manufacturers has led to a rapid decrease in the population of this important species,” Humane Society of the United States Vice President for Animal Research Kathleen Conlee said. “Fortunately, there are non-animal alternatives that can replace the use of horseshoe crab blood and help protect these amazing animals from further overharvest.”
