MISPILLION HARBOR – Against a backdrop of migrating shorebirds and spawning horseshoe crabs on the beach at Mispillion Harbor, DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin was joined by U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons, and Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester to celebrate the completion of the Mispillion Harbor restoration. The three-year project restored the area in the wake of damage inflicted by a series of coastal storms including 2012’s Hurricane Sandy, and built resiliency against future storms impacting this vitally important habitat. Also joining the Secretary and the Congressional Delegation were U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Northeast Regional Director Wendi Weber, and National Fish & Wildlife Foundation Vice President of Conservation Programs Eric Schwaab.

Who is in the Photo?
Located east of Milford within the Milford Neck Wildlife Area, Mispillion Harbor is globally significant for the high numbers of migrating shorebirds that stop there each spring to refuel by feeding on the eggs of spawning horseshoe crabs, with both species favoring the harbor’s sheltered sandy beaches and calm waters than other less-sheltered sites along Delaware’s Bayshore. Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) led the task of restoring balance to this critical habitat, as well as planning the restoration of the surrounding Milford Neck tidal marsh, in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), The Nature Conservancy, and Delaware Wild Lands, with support from other conservation partners and local community members.

Federal funds totaling $5.8 million through USFWS and NFWF were paired with $2 million in state matching funds to complete restoration of Mispillion Harbor and to create a longer-term plan for restoring the integrity of Milford Neck’s marshlands and forest habitat.

“I want to commend everyone involved – the Congressional Delegation, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation, and all of our other conservation partners – for their support in bringing this important project to completion,” said DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin. “Through this partnership, we have restored one of the Delaware Bayshore’s most extraordinary places. Mispillion Harbor can now continue to provide safe haven to migrating shorebirds, including the threatened red knot, and to the spawning horseshoe crabs whose eggs fuel their long journey, as well as drawing visitors from around the world to observe the vital interaction of these species.”

“The funding that the congressional delegation worked hard to acquire for Delaware projects after Hurricane Sandy not only saved this area, but saved a part of Delaware’s tourism economy,” said Senator Tom Carper, ranking member of the Environment and Public Works Committee in the U.S. Senate. “That money was put to good use. We didn’t just fix the damage, we created a long-term plan to mitigate damage from future storms. Some people say we can’t have a strong economy and healthy environment at the same time, but I believe this project is a great example of how we cannot have one without the other.”

“Delaware’s wetlands and coastal habitats are not only beautiful, they’re also unique parts of our ecosystem and critical to our economy,” said Senator Chris Coons. “In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, these wetlands were truly at risk, and I’m so proud of everyone at the state, federal, and local level who came together to protect the Mispillion Harbor Reserve, the Milford Neck conservation area, and all the creatures who call these places home.”
“This vital conservation project is a great example of steps we can take to restore ecological balance along our coast. With the completion of the Mispillion Harbor Restoration, horseshoe crabs now have a new beach to spawn their young, red knots have a place to refuel on their journey north, and Delaware is revitalizing its pristine coastline,” said Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester. “It’s only through the continued efforts of local, state, and federal collaborators that we can both save endangered species and preserve the First State’s beauty for all to enjoy.”

In Mispillion Harbor, habitat restoration work began in 2016 and was completed this spring, including:

• The existing rock structure – originally constructed in the 1980s to protect the harbor – was raised by an average of 3.5 feet to a height of 6 feet over a distance of 2,300 linear feet, and was extended westward by an additional 400 feet, tying into the existing dune. To increase stability, the base of the structure also was broadened by 18 feet.
• Sandy beach areas were expanded by adding 40,000 cubic yards of sand along the inside of the rock structure between the north groin and south groin, and on the south side of the south groin.
• Five new groins ranging from 80-150 feet were constructed perpendicular to the rock structure to hold the sand in place.
• Swains Beach was restored by adding 500 cubic yards of sand, after removing materials used as riprap by a previous owner, including: concrete waste, two truckloads of old tires, two truckloads of metal debris and other waste. Also, volunteers planted 5,000 beach grass plugs to help hold the sand in place.

For the Milford Neck conservation area, hydrodynamic modeling, restoration alternatives, and a restoration plan were collaboratively developed by DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife, The Nature Conservancy and Delaware Wild Lands, who collectively own 10,000 acres of Milford Neck, including the state-owned Milford Neck Wildlife Area.

“The success of this collaborative restoration effort has played out this spring on the shoreline of Mispillion Harbor, with horseshoe crabs spawning on the beaches and shorebirds eating their fill of eggs,” said Regional Director Weber, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “This project truly exemplifies the power of partnerships. When we combine our investments, energy, and innovation to restore Mispillion Harbor and build a stronger Atlantic Coast, we can accomplish far more for wildlife and people than any single agency or organization can accomplish alone.”

In addition to supporting the recovery of the federally-listed threatened red knot by helping provide a stable food source for shorebirds in a protected area, and offering a safe haven for spawning horseshoe crabs, the work at Mispillion Harbor, Milford Neck, and associated navigable waterways also benefits local residents and visitors.

Restoration work to protect Mispillion Harbor and to maintain tidal flow through coastal marshes, supports local communities and enhances recreational and commercial boating and fishing access, as well as other outdoor opportunities in the area, including:

• Public boat ramps at Cedar Creek a half-mile upstream from the harbor and on the Mispillion River in Milford 10 miles upstream;
• The DuPont Nature Center, which overlooks the harbor with its deck offering a sweeping view of the spring spectacle of shorebirds and horseshoe crabs, is owned and operated by DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife, and attracts thousands of local, regional, national, and international visitors each year;
• Local businesses near the harbor – Cedar Creek Marina, a commercial marina and dry-dock facility, and Delaware Bay Launch Services, which operates a fleet of boats servicing ship and barge traffic on the Delaware Bay and River headed to ports in Philadelphia, Trenton, Camden, and Wilmington; and
• Farmlands and residential areas, notably the nearby Town of Slaughter Beach, which has more than 350 homes, a volunteer fire company, and public recreation facilities including beach access, a picnic pavilion, public restrooms, and interpretive signs. The town serves the region by supporting school and nature center programs, fishing, wildlife viewing, kayaking, and other recreational uses of the beach and bay.

Restoration work planned for Milford Neck will expand on the benefits from the Mispillion Harbor restoration, further facilitating movement of storm and spring tide waters throughout the tidal marsh system woven into the area of Slaughter Beach, Milford Neck, Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, and other state and conservation partner-owned properties as well as residential and agricultural areas.

Media Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

SLAUGHTER BEACH – The DuPont Nature Center at Mispillion Harbor Reserve, a DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife facility, will host its eighth annual Peace, Love & Horseshoe Crab Festival, celebrating the spring arrival of migrating shorebirds and spawning horseshoe crabs, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 20 at the center, located at 2992 Lighthouse Road, east of Milford, DE 19963, near Slaughter Beach. Admission is free.

Visitors will enjoy fun festivities and educational activities, with food available for purchase. Everyone attending also will receive an Estuary Eco-Challenge passport to be stamped as they participate in a series of Eco-Station activities. The Eco-Stations will provide visitors with opportunities to identify shorebirds, get close to live horseshoe crabs and other aquatic species, learn how to cast a fishing rod, learn about food webs, and much more!

Visitors also will have great viewing opportunities from the center’s large deck to see the interaction between horseshoe crabs and migrating shorebirds, including federally-threatened red knots, which depend on horseshoe crab eggs to help fuel their long journey from South America to their Arctic breeding grounds. DNREC’s Delaware Shorebird Project Team members will be on hand to identify the shorebirds along the shoreline surrounding the center.

Parking will be available at the Lacy E. Nichols Jr. Cedar Creek Boating Access Area’s public boat ramp, with a shuttle running to the center throughout the day. The festival will be held rain or shine, except in the case of thunderstorms, coastal flooding or storms with high winds and heavy rain.

Located on the edge of Mispillion Harbor at the intersection of the mouths of the Mispillion River and Cedar Creek, the Division of Fish & Wildlife’s DuPont Nature Center regularly offers a variety of interactive exhibits, school tours and educational programs. Spring and summer hours from May 1 through Aug. 31 are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free and open to the public.

For more information about the Peace, Love & Horseshoe Crab Festival, or about the DuPont Nature Center and its programs, please call 302-422-1329, or visit DuPont Nature Center.

Media contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.

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NEAR SLAUGHTER BEACH – A new video premiering on DNREC’s YouTube Channel offers a look at ongoing beach restoration work to restore and protect vital wildlife habitat along the shoreline at Mispillion Harbor on Delaware’s Bayshore east of Milford.

The video tells of crucial ecological work done to perpetuate an annual internationally-known Delaware spectacle that also is unique to North America. Every spring, Delaware’s central Bayshore, with the Mispillion Harbor as its epicenter, hosts thousands of migrating shorebirds – including the threatened red knot – stopping to refuel on their long journey to their Arctic breeding grounds. Their arrival coincides with another annual rite of spring: thousands of spawning horseshoe crabs coming ashore to lay their eggs on Bayshore beaches. These eggs serve provide the feast for the hungry shorebirds before continuing their flight.

Hurricane Sandy and other coastal storms have taken a toll on the beaches where these two species meet, eroding away critical habitat. To rebuild these beaches at Mispillion Harbor and to protect this area from future storm events, DNREC’s restoration work includes construction of a 1,700-foot-long stone dike to absorb erosive wave action and adding 30,000 cubic yards of sand to restore the beaches tucked behind it.

View “Mispillion Harbor Restoration” and other DNREC videos on DNREC’s YouTube Channel.

DOVER – The Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve (DNERR) is seeking volunteers to assist with the annual bay-wide horseshoe crab spawning survey in May and June on Kent County’s Ted Harvey Wildlife Area and Kitts Hummock and North Bowers beaches.

For those who are interested in assisting with this year’s survey, DNERR staff will host volunteer training sessions at the St. Jones Reserve, 818 Kitts Hummock Road, Dover, DE 19901. Volunteers can choose from one of the three trainings scheduled for:

• Saturday, April 1 from 9 to 11 a.m.
• Saturday, April 1 from 2 to 4 p.m.
• Thursday, April 6 from 6 to 8 p.m.

New participants are required to attend one of the trainings, while past participants in the annual survey must attend a training once every three years.

Volunteers are asked to register online before the day of the training by visiting https://2017dnerrhscsurveytraining.eventbrite.com. For more information on horseshoe crab monitoring, visit http://de.gov/dnerrhscsurvey, or contact Drexel Siok or Maggie Pletta at 302-739-6377 or email them at DNERRhsc@gmail.com.

Horseshoe crab spawning surveys have been conducted since 1990 in Delaware Bay. Despite the horseshoe crab’s importance to the ecology of the bay, little is known about its population status. Now, every spring on several peak spawning days, volunteers donate their time to count crabs on beaches in Delaware and New Jersey. Data collected during these surveys is key for scientists to monitor changes in the number of spawning crabs in the bay. Delaware’s well-trained and enthusiastic volunteers have made this program one of the most successful volunteer-based wildlife surveys in the country.

At the training offered by DNREC, volunteers will learn how to conduct a survey, properly record data and distinguish between male and female horseshoe crabs. The training will also highlight past results of horseshoe crab survey data and how it is being used.

In addition, volunteers will be instructed on how to request their preferred dates for survey nights. Participants who are interested in other Delaware Bay beaches not coordinated by DNERR are welcome to attend the training and will be referred to the appropriate beach survey leader for further information. Volunteers must be older than 13 to participate in the training and survey, and all volunteers between the ages of 13 and 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

Information on registering to participate in the survey will be sent to volunteers who have completed the training and to those who participated in the training and survey over the past three years. To participate in the survey, preregistration will be required.

For information on horseshoe crab monitoring, volunteer information and more, please visit http://de.gov/dnerr or on Facebook – Delaware NERR.

The Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve is a partnership between the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. DNERR is administered through the Delaware Coastal Programs Section of DNREC’s Office of the Secretary.

This project is part of DNREC’s Bayshore Initiative, a landscape approach to restore and protect fish and wildlife habitat, increase volunteer participation in habitat stewardship projects, enhance low-impact outdoor recreation and ecotourism opportunities, and promote associated environmentally compatible economic development. For more information, click Delaware Bayshore.

Media contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.

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‘Feast on the Beach: The Delaware Bay Horseshoe Crab Shorebird Connection’ film
educates, entertains and encourages ecotourism

WILMINGTON – The Delaware Shorebird Project today premiered Feast on the Beach: The Delaware Bay Horseshoe Crab Shorebird Connection, a film produced to raise awareness and understanding about the ecological connection between horseshoe crabs and shorebirds migrating through the Delaware Bay area, as well as the researchers who study them.

Every spring, hundreds of thousands of migrating shorebirds – including the threatened red knot – pass through Delaware’s central Bayshore region and neighboring New Jersey from areas as far away as southern South America on the way to their summer breeding grounds in the Arctic. The Delaware Bay is a crucial refueling stop, where the birds eat horseshoe crab eggs to build their fat reserves before continuing their journey.

“This new film highlights one of nature’s great partnerships that is unique to Delaware: the meeting of migratory shorebirds and spawning horseshoe crabs on our Delaware Bays beaches each spring,” said Governor Carney. “Possibly the First State’s largest eco-tourism event of the year, the spectacle they present contributes much to Delaware’s conservation economy, drawing scientists, researchers and wildlife watchers from all over the world to visit and enjoy our great state.”

Beginning in early May, hundreds of thousands of horseshoe crabs make their way toward the beaches of the Delaware Bay. At high tide, especially during the new and full moon, the females come ashore to lay a clutch of 2,000 to 4,000 grayish-green eggs. Many of the egg clutches are disturbed by the bay’s wave action or by successive spawning females and come to the surface.

These millions of loose eggs on the bay beaches become a feast for migrating shorebirds, including red knots, ruddy turnstones, semipalmated sandpipers, sanderlings, short-billed dowitchers and dunlins. The birds have already traveled thousands of miles and have lost a great deal of weight. They feed voraciously on the horseshoe crab eggs, regaining as much as four to nine percent of their body weight per day before resuming their migration to the Arctic.

Researchers capture shorebirds, measure and weigh them, and attach a flag with a unique alphanumeric code. The flag’s color signifies the country where the bird was caught. Teams of scientists and volunteers can monitor shorebird numbers and movements around the Delaware Bay and along their migration routes by resighting these flags. Horseshoe crabs are also tagged.

“Each spring, Delaware’s resident horseshoe crabs and visiting migratory shorebirds come together in a natural spectacle on our Bayshore beaches that can be seen nowhere else in the world,” said DNREC Secretary David Small. “The film premiering today will be available to a wide audience so more people can learn about this unique event and its ecological and environmental importance.”

Jean Woods, Ph.D., Curator of Birds and Director of Collections at the Delaware Museum of Natural History, has been part of the Delaware Shorebird Project for 16 years. “As a researcher, I’m privileged to study the shorebirds and horseshoe crabs that come to Delaware Bay, and it’s exciting to share what we do with a broader audience,” Woods said. “We hope to encourage people to come out and experience this phenomenon for themselves – it’s even more impressive in person.”

The Delaware Bay is a major stop on the Atlantic Flyway for spring migrating shorebirds and supports the largest gathering of rufa red knots. Providing and maintaining quality nesting, migration stopover and wintering sites in this region is extremely important for population health and stability of Atlantic Flyway shorebird populations. Actions taken to conserve and monitor shorebirds here have wide-ranging benefits to the flyway. The Delaware Bay is an important link in the Atlantic Flyway Shorebird Initiative, a cross-organizational effort to conserve 15 Atlantic Flyway shorebird species.

Feast on the Beach is available online at www.delmnh.org/feast-on-the-beach, along with the Delaware Shorebird Project’s 2016 field season report. The film was produced by Michael Oates of 302 Stories, Inc., who has filmed shorebirds and horseshoe crabs for more than 30 years. He first drew attention to the crisis of overharvesting of horseshoe crabs with his 1999 Emmy-nominated program Dollars on the Beach.

The film will be highlighted at the Delaware Museum of Natural History’s Shorebirds and Horseshoe Crabs Day on Saturday, March 11 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., featuring a variety of activities targeted to families. DMNH’s Curator of Birds and Director of Collections, Jean Woods, Ph.D. will be on hand to talk about the film and her research on the shorebirds. Art featuring horseshoe crabs and shorebirds created by students at Brandywine Springs Elementary School will be on display through a partnership with Celebrate Delaware Bay and the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network.

Funding for the film was provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Delaware Bay Estuary Project, the Delmarva Ornithological Society, and the Fair Play Foundation. Berkana, Center for Media and Education, Inc. partnered with the Delaware Shorebird Project in obtaining funding for the project.

About the Delaware Shorebird Project:
The Delaware Shorebird Project is a dedicated team of scientists, volunteers and birders working to understand the threats to our shorebirds. Since 1997, they have researched the populations and health of migratory shorebirds that visit Delaware Bay each spring. The goals of the project include identifying and protecting resources crucial to the successful migration of these shorebirds. Their research is vital to an international network that supports and directs shorebird habitat protection and management plans. The project is managed by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Division of Fish & Wildlife, Species Conservation and Research Program.

About the Delaware Museum of Natural History:
As the only natural history museum in the state, the Delaware Museum of Natural History opened its doors in 1972 to excite and inform people about the natural world through exploration and discovery. The museum houses Delaware’s only permanent dinosaur display, surrounded by exhibits of birds, mammals, shells and other specimens from around the world. The museum stores renowned scientific collections of mollusks and birds, including one of the top-10 mollusk collections in the United States.

Media contacts: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902, joanna.wilson@delaware.gov, or Jennifer Acord, Delaware Museum of Natural History, 302-658-9111, ext. 313, cell: 302-384-3694, jacord@delmnh.org.

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