After watching program on red knots and horseshoe crabs, I wondered what is
the status of red knots on this coast and what resources do they depend
upon.

Anyone up to speed on this?

Thanks,

Al Wagar
Shoreline

On 2/10/08 1:25 PM, "Megan Lyden" <meganlyden at msn.com> wrote:

>
> Hi everyone,
>
> Just wanted to let you know that tonight, at 8, on KCTS, PBS?s Nature will be
> about the relationship between the horseshoe crab and the Red Knot:
> ?This is a story of the interconnection of life, how every species is
> important, no matter how big or small. At the center is the humble horseshoe
> crab, a creature that has remained virtually unchanged for 300 million years.
> Its annual spring spawning produces millions of eggs that are the lifeline for
> a tiny bird called a red knot, which migrates 10,000 miles from South America
> to the Arctic each year. Scientific and medical communities have discovered
> that the crab also provides an indispensable testing agent for drugs and
> vaccines, as well as resources for human optics and burn treatment. But
> horseshoe crab numbers are plummeting from their new use as bait for the
> fishing industry, dropping by two-thirds since 1990. The precious pyramid
> depending on this age-old creature is about to come crashing down.?
>
> http://www.kcts.org/tvschedule/
> http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/
>
> Megan Lyden
> Bellevue, Washington
>
>


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