​Affordability is on everyone’s mind. We are all asking what we can afford now, what we need to save, and what today’s choices will cost tomorrow. The same is true in nature.
 
Delaware Bay has its own economy. Every spring, tiny green horseshoe crab eggs become one of the Bay’s most valuable currencies. The influx of calorie-rich eggs fuels red knots, ruddy turnstones, sanderlings, fish, terrapins, and the larger web of life.
 
When there are enough eggs on the beaches, shorebirds gain the weight they need to reach Arctic breeding grounds. Fish and terrapins fuel up after a long winter. And that abundance helps sustain the next generation of horseshoe crabs and the future productivity of the Bay.
A large spawning horseshoe crab population is a long-term investment in the Delaware Bay ecosystem.

​Delaware Bay Was Once a Superabundant Food Engine
 
In the 1980s and early 1990s, horseshoe crabs were dense enough to “cobble” the beaches, and egg densities in the upper beach sand often exceeded 50,000 eggs per square meter. That abundance supported extraordinary concentrations of migratory shorebirds and fish.
 
When eggs were abundant, red knots could gain weight at extraordinary rates, and the Bay supported immense concentrations of migratory wildlife.
 
During the 1990s, Delaware Bay horseshoe crab bait harvest increased approximately tenfold, contributing to a greater than 90 percent decline in egg availability for red knots.
 
Scientists have suggested that red knot recovery may require average egg densities of at least 50,000 eggs per square meter. In 2024, NJDEP reported average egg densities of 7,618 eggs per square meter on Delaware Bay beaches. Recent average egg densities remain more than ten times below estimates from the 1980s.
 
The red knot numbers tell a similar story. Delaware Bay peak counts of red knots averaged more than 43,000 birds from 1986 to 2002. From 2012 to 2024, they averaged about 21,000, still far below historic highs. NJDEP reports that recent counts remain roughly 77 percent below the historic maximum count of 94,460 red knots in 1989.

​A Hopeful Year, But Not a Full Recovery
 
This year’s shorebird observations offer reason for hope after years of conservation work.
 
Preliminary 2026 project observations reported approximately 33,000 red knots in a May 25 New Jersey-side count. Egg availability improved later in May on some beaches, although overall egg densities appeared broadly similar to those of recent years.
 
Even more encouraging, the proportion of red knots reaching the 180-gram departure threshold was extremely high. This matters because it is the weight biologists look for as a sign that birds are leaving the bay in good condition for the final flight to the Arctic.
 
These hopeful (albeit preliminary) numbers suggest that when beaches are restored, crabs are protected, and birds are given space to feed, Delaware Bay can still do what it has always done: fuel life. Conservation investments can pay dividends, but now is the time to let those investments grow, not cash them out too soon.

​The Balance Is Still Fragile
 
Many factors influence whether enough eggs are available to the food web.
 
Like economics, some forces are beyond our direct control: climate, water temperature, migration timing, sea-level rise, and storms that sweep sand from beaches more frequently.
 
Plus, timing matters.
 
Shorebirds need eggs to be abundant and available during a very narrow window. Climate change can shift timing in ways that make it harder for shorebirds and horseshoe crabs to meet each other at the right moment. Water temperature can alter spawning timing. Cold water can delay spawning, while unusually warm conditions may advance it, potentially reducing the overlap between peak egg availability and shorebird migration.
 
Plus, horseshoe crabs can take roughly a decade to reach maturity. That is why the choices within our control matter so much.
 
We cannot control timing, or every tide, storm, or climate impact moving through Delaware Bay. But there are clear levers we can pull to support a strong Delaware Bay and a thriving horseshoe crab economy.

​First, Protect and Restore Delaware Bay Beaches
 
On Delaware Bay, sand is the platform for spawning and the delivery system for eggs.
 
Horseshoe crabs need dynamic sandy beaches with the right slope, grain size, and elevation so eggs are not smothered, washed away, or buried beyond the reach of shorebirds. American Littoral Society’s work at Reeds Beach, Cooks Beach, Kimbles Beach, and other Delaware Bay sites shows what this looks like in practice: removing rubble and debris, adding sand at a suitable grade and depth, restoring beaches for horseshoe crab spawning and shorebird foraging, and using oyster reefs and marsh restoration to strengthen shorelines. If you build the habitat, the wildlife comes. Restoring beaches is an investment in the bay’s productivity.
 
It’s just a bonus that by improving habitat and increasing shoreline resilience, we strengthen the shoreline for communities too. 

Second, Maintain New Jersey’s Horseshoe Crab Harvest Moratorium And Preserve The Delaware Bay Region’s Zero-Female Bait-Harvest Quota

Taking adult crabs for bait removes spawning animals from a system that needs more eggs, not fewer.
 
Reopening a female harvest would be especially shortsighted. Female horseshoe crabs are the reproductive engine of the population. Removing them limits the food source that supports shorebirds, fish, terrapins, and the broader fisheries food web.
 
Horseshoe crab eggs help feed the bay. For people who rely on fisheries, this is also a fisheries productivity issue. These eggs support the chain of life that supports fish, baitfish, and the species commercial and recreational fishermen care about.
 
Reducing that food supply before the horseshoe crab population and egg densities have fully rebounded is not smart management. It is pulling from the principal before the investment has matured. You would not drain your savings just because the market finally started moving in the right direction. You would let the investment grow.
 
The same is true here. Recent signs of improvement are exactly why we should stay the course. They are not a reason to roll back protections. They are encouraging evidence that sustained conservation can help the system recover when conditions align.

Third, Move Fully Toward Synthetic Biomedical Alternatives
 
For decades, horseshoe crabs have been captured and bled for biomedical testing. Horseshoe crabs have contributed enormously to human health. But synthetic alternatives now exist.
 
Validated alternatives to horseshoe crab-derived endotoxin tests now exist and are increasingly recognized by U.S. and international standards. Accelerating their adoption is necessary to reduce biomedical reliance on wild horseshoe crabs. Eliminating the biomedical pressure is another lever we can pull. 

​Fourth, We Can All Be Good Stewards
 
Everyone who loves Delaware Bay has a role to play.
 
People can help by respecting seasonal beach closures, giving feeding shorebirds space, turning over stranded horseshoe crabs, joining American Littoral Society tagging events, supporting beach restoration, supporting smart horseshoe crab policy, and bringing others to the bay to learn why the Bayshore is so important.

​Let the Investment Grow
 
Recent assessments indicate that Delaware Bay horseshoe crab abundance has generally improved since approximately 2012, following earlier harvest reductions. Those signs of improvement have prompted decision-makers to look again at the models that inform horseshoe crab bait harvest policy. But abundance today should not make us forget how hard this system was hit, or how long recovery takes, particularly for slow-maturing species.
 
The real question is whether there are enough eggs, in the right places, at the right time, to support the food web and broader ecology of the system to a level we want.

​Now is not the time to roll back protections. Now is the time to let the investment grow.
 
Policymakers should maintain horseshoe crab harvest moratoriums, keep Delaware Bay female horseshoe crabs off the bait market, expand funding for Delaware Bay beach restoration, and accelerate the transition to synthetic biomedical alternatives.
 
To support a thriving Bay full of life, we need to act on the levers we still control. Delaware Bay still knows how to sustain life. Our job is to give it enough room, enough time, and enough horseshoe crabs to do so.

On May 30th, over 70 volunteers from Evergreen Group visited Sandy Hook for a day filled of service work. Attendees spent the day cleaning the beach, filling biodegradable shell bags, constructing Reef Prisms, and learning about tabby concrete, a hardened substance derived from recycled oyster shells. As volunteers assisted Society staff in assembling and constructing materials, they learned about the purpose and destination of these materials. Dorn Island, located in the Navesink River, will serve as a monitoring station for Society staff to observe and document the performance of varying shoreline protection materials in order to determine what best to use in large scale habitat restoration efforts throughout the state. In Fall 2026, the Evergreen Group volunteers will be invited back to transport and install the materials constructed at the May 30th event at Dorn Island allowing Society staff to begin the monitoring process. ​

The critical long-term study known widely among the local ornithological community as the annual “Harbor Heron’s Survey” has been made possible over the years by a truly outstanding and enduring collaborative effort between the NYC Bird Alliance, their partners across academic institutions, City, State and Federal agencies, local experts, non-profit organizations, volunteers, the Hudson River Foundation, and of course the American Littoral Society!

​Over the last 20 years, Don Riepe, the American Littoral Society’s Jamaica Bay Guardian and captain of the Society’s NY program boat has been providing critical boat support to ferry scientists and volunteers from the NYC Bird alliance to known isolated heron colony islands across New York Harbor, thus enabling researchers conduct long-term monitoring survey efforts detailed in the recent scientific paper linked at the end of this story.   ​

Since the kickoff of horseshoe crab spawning in the beginning of May, the Society’s Delaware Bay Restoration Corps members have been lending a helping hand at Bay Point Beach. This consisted of assisting Habitat Restoration Technician, Kerstin Axe, with imperative monitoring activities. Restoration activities at Bay Point Beach were completed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, in conjunction with the Stockton University Coastal Research Center. ​

Throughout May and early June, R-Corps members have tagged horseshoe crabs, keeping track of their sex and condition. They have also ensured minimal impingement on the breakwater and sill structures, which aim to maintain sand on the beach by slowing wave activity. In the coming weeks, as horseshoe crab spawning dies down, members will look to shift gears to marsh and oyster monitoring. These surveys will allow the Society to share insight about the growth of the marsh, as well as the recruitment of oysters on breakwater and sill structures, within the 2026 season. ​

These monitoring activities contribute to the overall experience of the Delaware Bay Restoration Corps. This season, they have also had the opportunity to join Wildlife Restoration Partnerships for bird banding and horseshoe crab egg density surveys. Through the banding of red knots, as well as the counting of horseshoe crab surface eggs, members are learning the ins and outs of the Society’s programmatic restoration program, which builds habitat for migratory shorebirds and horseshoe crabs. ​

What does climate action look like in the hands of students? In the American Littoral Society’s Beach Grasses in Classes program, it looks like hundreds of young people rolling up their sleeves, nurturing dune grass in their classrooms, and then heading to the beach to help restore coastal habitats one plant at a time. 
​
Beach Grasses in Classes combines hands-on learning with real-world environmental impact. It begins with an interactive classroom lesson introducing students to the vital role dunes play in protecting communities from storms, flooding, and the growing effects of climate change. Each student then plants a beachgrass plug in a pot and cares for it at school for several weeks. As the grass begins to grow, so does the students’ connection to the ecosystem around them. ​

The impact of this program is widespread, with plantings taking place at 7 Jersey Shore locations this year, including Ocean City, Long Branch, Asbury Park, Bradley Beach, Shark River, Monmouth Beach, Sea Bright, and Fortescue Beach on the Delaware Bay.

A portion of the program was funded by the New Jersey Department of Education’s Expanding Access to Climate Change Education and the New Jersey Student Learning Standards through Interdisciplinary Learning and Community Resilience Projects grant program. Through this support, 240 students from Egg Harbor Township High School participated over two years, planting 4,000 dune grass plugs annually on Ocean City beaches from 5th through 12th Streets.
​
Planting dune grass is a powerful example of a nature-based solution; one the American Littoral Society uses to protect coastal communities from the impacts of climate change while building healthier, more resilient shorelines. ​

Just as important as the environmental benefits was the excitement the students brought to the project. Many talked about coming back to visit the planting sites to see how the dunes developed over time. Their enthusiasm was a reminder that programs like Beach Grasses in Classes do more than restore habitat, they cultivate curiosity, responsibility, and a lasting sense of environmental stewardship. One plant, one classroom, and one beach at a time, these students are helping shape a stronger future for New Jersey’s coast. ​

To reserve your spot in our 2027 Beach Grasses in Classes program, reach out to michelle@littoralsociety.org or click here.​

Every year, the Littoral Society joins our partners at United Advocacy Group (UAG) and Southeast Gateway Community Action Partnership (Gateway CAP) for "Family Day of Service" in Bridgeton. For the past several years, volunteers have joined us to help maintain "Triangle Park" which is a joint project between us that we've been working to improve since 2019. 

This site originally had a gas station and some old houses on it, which had long since been demolished. At the corner of MLK Jr. Way and South Avenue, across from the Alms Center and a playground, this site had great promise to become an environmentally friendly "pocket park" which could soak up stormwater runoff, beautify the area and provide habitat for pollinators with native plants, and be a nice place for local residents to enjoy some time outside.

Family Day of Service is a long-running event hosted by UAG that we have joined as partners. For the past several years, one of the projects that volunteers focus on during the event is maintaining "Triangle Park." Other projects have involved things like painting a mural on a new fence in the neighborhood, picking up litter, and this year included painting a new bus stop that was recently constructed.

A total of about 50 kids and adults volunteered their time this year to help their community. The Littoral Society took charge of a group focusing on Triangle Park. We had a couple of tasks for them: add soil & mulch to a new planter box, pull weeds out of the rain garden, and plant some new plants. The kids went at their jobs with more enthusiasm than you would think possible for pulling weeds!

As a result of their hard work, this little park looks much better and now has even more native perennials providing food & habitat for local pollinators. And the rain garden will continue to capture and filter stormwater runoff so that it doesn't flow straight into the local stream, to the Cohansey River, and from there down to the Delaware Bay.

Extra special thanks to all the volunteers that came out, as well as our partners at UAG & Gateway CAP, and to the Littoral Society's Restoration Corps for making this great event possible!

Along New Jersey’s Delaware Bay, restoring marshes and beaches isn’t just good for wildlife—it’s also a practical way to help protect nearby towns from flooding. The American Littoral Society’s Delaware Bayshore work is showing how investing in healthy coastal habitats can strengthen the shoreline, reduce risk, and support the communities that depend on a thriving bay. 

​On April 24, 2026, the New Jersey Association of Floodplain Managers visited the Delaware Bayshore to see these nature-based solutions firsthand. The group toured our breakwaters in the Northwest Reach from land and viewed our beach restoration work at Thompsons Beach from the A.J. Meerwald, a historic sailboat and New Jersey’s official tall ship. The Cumberland County Planning Department organized the trip to highlight the innovative approaches being used on the Bayshore—and to share examples that other coastal communities across the state can learn from. ​

This work comes at a critical time. Decades of elevation loss due to historic land use around the bay, combined with stronger storms and sea-level rise, have contributed to the loss of marshland and beach habitat. These natural areas are essential: they provide spawning beaches for horseshoe crabs, feeding habitat for shorebirds, and a protective buffer that helps absorb storm surge before floodwaters reach homes, roads, and businesses. 

​Our restoration approach focuses on both rebuilding habitat and making it last. It’s not only about putting sand back on the beach--it’s also about helping keep that sand in place. Offshore structures can reduce wave energy that would otherwise continue to erode the shoreline. At the same time, healthy marshes act like a sponge, soaking up floodwaters and storm surge.

In the Northwest Reach, our hybrid breakwaters are designed to do two things at once: protect what remains and help rebuild what has been lost. By reducing wave energy, the breakwaters help slow ongoing erosion of the marsh edge. They also trap sediment on the inland side, encouraging natural deposition that can gradually raise elevations and support marsh recovery. ​

Projects like this matter for every coastal community looking for cost-effective, long-term ways to manage flood risk. Nature-based solutions can complement traditional infrastructure while also delivering benefits that seawalls and bulkheads can’t—like habitat for wildlife and improved water quality. Here in Cumberland County, continued restoration helps protect marinas and bay-dependent industries in places like Fortescue, Commercial Township, and Maurice River Township—historic communities whose livelihoods are closely tied to the health of the Delaware Bay. 

​Looking ahead, we’re building on this progress. The American Littoral Society has been awarded an additional $5 million through the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Natural Climate Solutions grant program to add more breakwaters and expand the project across the Northwest Reach. This next phase will help scale up the protective and habitat-building benefits that the Floodplain Managers saw during their visit. 

What can you do? There are many ways to care for the coast. You can support the American Littoral Society’s work by becoming a member, making a donation, volunteering when opportunities are available, and sharing these projects with friends and family. Staying informed and talking about nature-based flood protection helps build the public support needed to bring solutions like this to more communities. 
​
Restoring the Delaware Bay shoreline is about protecting places—both the wildlife habitats that make this bay globally important and the communities that call the Bayshore home. As this work continues, we hope it serves as a practical example of how restoration can reduce flooding risk while bringing the bay back to life. ​