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Assessment and Management of North American Horseshoe Crab Populations, with Emphasis on a Multispecies Framework for Delaware Bay, U.S.A. Populations

  • Chapter
Changing Global Perspectives on Horseshoe Crab Biology, Conservation and Management

Abstract

The horseshoe crab fishery on the US Atlantic coast represents a compelling fishery management story for many reasons, including ecological complexity, health and human safety ramifications, and socio-economic conflicts. Knowledge of stock status and assessment and monitoring capabilities for the species have increased greatly in the last 15 years and permitted managers to make more informed harvest recommendations. Incorporating the bioenergetics needs of migratory shorebirds, which feed on horseshoe crab eggs, into the management framework for horseshoe crabs was identified as a goal, particularly in the Delaware Bay region where the birds and horseshoe crabs exhibit an important ecological interaction. In response, significant effort was invested in studying the population dynamics, migration ecology, and the ecologic relationship of a key migratory shorebird, the Red Knot, to horseshoe crabs. A suite of models was developed that linked Red Knot populations to horseshoe crab populations through a mass gain function where female spawning crab abundance determined what proportion of the migrating Red Knot population reached a critical body mass threshold. These models were incorporated in an adaptive management framework wherein optimal harvest decisions for horseshoe crab are recommended based on several resource-based and value-based variables and thresholds. The current adaptive framework represents a true multispecies management effort where additional data over time are employed to improve the predictive models and reduce parametric uncertainty. The possibility of increasing phenologic asynchrony between the two taxa in response to climate change presents a potential challenge to their ecologic interaction in Delaware Bay.

The findings and conclusions in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northeast Fishery Center, Lamar, PA, USA

    Michael J. Millard & John A. Sweka

  2. U.S. Geological Survey, Alabama Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA

    Conor P. McGowan

  3. U.S. Geological Survey, Leetown Science Center, Leetown, WV, USA

    David R. Smith

Authors
  1. Michael J. Millard
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  2. John A. Sweka
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  3. Conor P. McGowan
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  4. David R. Smith
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael J. Millard .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dauphin Island Sea Lab, University of South Alabama, Dauphin Island, Alabama, USA

    Ruth H. Carmichael

  2. Fordham University Dept. Natural Sciences, New York, New York, USA

    Mark L. Botton

  3. Department of Biology and Chemistry,, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Paul K.S. Shin

  4. Department of Biology and Chemistry,, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Siu Gin Cheung

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Millard, M.J., Sweka, J.A., McGowan, C.P., Smith, D.R. (2015). Assessment and Management of North American Horseshoe Crab Populations, with Emphasis on a Multispecies Framework for Delaware Bay, U.S.A. Populations. In: Carmichael, R., Botton, M., Shin, P., Cheung, S. (eds) Changing Global Perspectives on Horseshoe Crab Biology, Conservation and Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-19542-1_24

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