To the Editor:
In the March 30 edition, there was an op-ed by NJ Audubon Society stating the practice of oyster farming using the “rack and bag” method may be detrimental to the Red Knot population. They state that the activity on the beach drives away the birds and the racks themselves may hinder the migration of the horseshoe crabs.
During last season’s Red Knot migration, I discussed the horseshoe crab population with some of the volunteers who go to the Delaware Bay beaches at night to count horseshoe crabs. Many agreed that the population of the crabs is at record lows. While at the same time commercial draggers from Delaware are harvesting thousands of horseshoe crabs at the mouth of the bay for sale in Delaware and surrounding states to be used as bait. These draggers can actually be seen from Cape May working the mouth of the bay. This seems a little counterproductive to preserve the beaches for the crabs, but yet allow unchecked harvest of the crabs before they enter the bay.
Shouldn’t the Audubon Society’s efforts be better spent taking on the commercial draggers and not the few oyster farmers who actually create jobs and help Cape May County’s economy?
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