Defenders of Wildlife Blog

For these shorebirds, it’s a situation gone from bad to worse: already the victim of plummeting populations, new research reveals that, despite efforts to save them, red knot numbers have continued to drop dramatically.

Shorebird background:

Roughly the size of a robin, red knots have one of the longest migrations on the planet, from the tip of South America to its Arctic breeding grounds. Partway through this 10,000-mile flight, the shorebirds make a stop to refuel at the east coast’s Delaware Bay. In an effort to gain weight quickly and reach their Arctic breeding grounds before early snows, the birds feast on horseshoe crab eggs recently laid in the sand.

At one time, more than 100,000 red knots came to the Delaware Bay stopover. But overharvest of the crabs – used for bait – have caused red knot numbers to plummet. In 2006, the bird was designated a candidate species for the federal endangered species list. This meant that although the Fish and Wildlife Service acknowledged that the bird warranted protection, there wasn’t funding to do so. In the years that have since passed, the situation of the bird has decreased rapidly.

“A loss of 6,000 birds is bad for a wintering population of 56,000, but for a population of 16,000 it is catastrophic. Have red knots reached the tipping point?”

Numbers in the red:

Larry Niles, a biologist who has spent the past decade working to protect shorebirds in trouble, travels to Chile to survey populations of wintering red knots. What he found this year was staggering.

“Where in previous years we counted 12,000 knots, this year we counted 6,000,” he blogged after his trip. “A loss of 6,000 birds is bad for a wintering population of 56,000, but for a population of 16,000 it is catastrophic. Have red knots reached the tipping point?”

Migrating red knots gather at Delaware Bay stopover

Taking a stand

The state of New Jersey doesn’t want to wait to find out. It proposed changing the status of the bird from threatened to endangered. The uplisting does not do much in terms of action, but the state hopes the move will raise awareness of the bird’s plight and may move the feds to act.

This isn’t the first step the state has taken to protect the bird. For a few years,  New Jersey has had a moratorium on horseshoe crab fishing, with the hope of increasing the food supply for red knots and bringing the bird’s population numbers up.

Unfortunately, the state’s actions alone will not be enough. Will the government take notice of this crisis and act, or will it be too late for red knots?

Watch a video detailing the plight of the red knot and its diminishing food source, horseshoe crabs. The video incorporates footage from the PBS Nature program, Crash: A Tale of Two Species, courtesy of Thirteen/WNET New York.

Learn more:

Defenders petitioned to emergency list the red knot in 2005. Learn more about how we fight to save this remarkable bird.

The endangered whooping crane made a huge step towards recovery this week, as biologists reintroduced ten captive-bred birds to the southwest marshes of Louisiana. Guided to their new wetland homes by their crane “parents” (biologists dressed in crane costumes), these whoopers literally took their first steps towards becoming a viable wild population. The state, which has not seen a whooping crane since 1950, will now host an annually growing population of these cranes at its White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area.

The whooping crane stands at nearly five feet tall, with a wingspan of up to seven feet. These magnificent birds used to range as far as the Arctic coast (breeding grounds) to central Mexico (wintering areas). But by the mid 19^th century, whooper numbers began plummeting as they lost their homes to development and agriculture or their lives to hunters. By 1967, the whooping crane was declared an endangered species, and captive breeding programs were created to prevent complete extinction.

At White Lake, where humans once caused their disappearance, humans now can work to bring the whooping crane back to its rightful place.

Defenders has been actively involved in the process to bring whoopers back to Louisiana. Last fall, we submitted more than 23,000 comments from our supporters to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and also sent local activists to meetings to support reintroduction.

Defenders in Action

Defenders has been actively involved in the process to bring whoopers back to Louisiana. Last fall, we submitted more than 23,000 comments from our supporters to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and also sent local activists to meetings to support reintroduction. We emphasized the need to minimize conflict between the cranes and nearby landowners and protect cranes from any other wildlife management activities. Fortunately, our concerns were addressed, and our recommendations will be used ensure a safe and successful reintroduction.

What You Can Do

Did you know? The whooping crane gets its name from its whooping call. Click here for more information about these cool cranes.

A green winged teal, one of the ducks threatened by the spill. Photo courtesy of Tom Munson, US Fish and Game

By October, large numbers of migratory birds will flock south to the Gulf of Mexico after a summer spent in Canada’s Boreal Forest. Ready to spend the winter in Louisiana marshes - typically rich with food -  these ducks have no idea what’s in store for them when they touch down. What impacts will a vastly different Gulf region have on these birds?

Dr. Jeff Wells, senior scientist for the Boreal Songbird Initiative, an organization dedicated to outreach and education about the importance of the Boreal Forest region to North America’s birds, other wildlife and the global environment, addresses this very question in a new article, “Gulf oil spill puts million of Canada’s migratory birds at risk.”

“The Gulf Coast, especially the Mississippi River Delta, is vitally important for many wetland bird species. The marshes, beaches and tidal flats provide ideal nesting and migratory stopover habitat for millions of waterfowl, seabirds, shorebirds and other waterbirds. These habitats also house the fish, mollusks and other marine life of the Gulf of Mexico, which make up the food supply for these birds. Scientists worry that the impact on some of the smaller food sources like plankton could have a far-reaching ripple effect on the entire food chain.”

Click here to read the full article and learn more about what awaits Canada’s migratory birds upon their return to the Gulf of Mexico.