The horseshoe crab plays a prominent role in the ecology and fisheries of Delaware Bay. The crabs are huge feeders on marine worms and bivalves. Their eggs serve as a primary food source for migratory shorebirds, juvenile fish and a variety of crabs. Juvenile and adult crabs are fed upon by sea turtles and sharks.

The rise in the horseshoe crabs population has not however helped the declining number of shorebirds. Every year hundreds of thousands of shorebirds converge on this ecologically significant region to feast on the eggs of the horseshoe crab. The Delaware Bay is a major stop for shorebirds traveling from their wintering grounds in South America to the breeding grounds in the Canadian Arctic. Shorebirds, like the Red Knot and Ruddy Turnstone.

One of the reasons for this is that it takes 8-9 years before the horseshoe crabs start laying eggs. And the fear is that f.ex. the Red Knot will suffer severely from this eggshortage and could be extinct from the area in a few years.

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