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Blue Monday
Unlike red-blooded humans, horseshoe crabs have copper in their blood that when exposed to oxygen turns blue. More of this blood was shed today at Seaside Park when the tractor that rakes the beach again used the area where horseshoe crabs are actively spawning and nesting to repeatedly turn around in. Today Karl Heine joined…
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Bloody Sunday
The tractor was back today and had done severe damage by crushing and mortally wounding many horseshoe crabs, including mating pairs. It was like witnessing a bloody battleground of unarmed soldiers unexpectedly wiped out by a well-equipped army. It just takes one giant tractor to repeatedly loop over the nesting area to kill a large…
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The Sound of Saturday
This morning there were no signs of tractors and the beach, particularly by the jetty (as usual during this time of year) was full of horseshoe crab spawning activity. I found stranded animals on their backs in several locations and returned them to safe spaces. I contacted the Bridgeport Parks Department and Sustainability Coordinator yesterday…
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Tractor Trailer
The new moon in May is a known stimulator of horseshoe crab spawning activity. That happened today, but the City of Bridgeport didn’t seem to notice. Instead their beach-raking tractor was out prepping for the official park opening on Memorial Day weekend and treading right on top of where horseshoe crabs were nesting and spawning.…
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Spawning 2023
The horseshoe crabs have started to show up at Seaside Park. Tuesday’s count included 4 dead, one with a tag that I reported to the US Fish & Wildlife Service through the horseshoe crab resighting form coordinated by the Maryland Fish & WIldlife Conservation Office. Tagging efforts are done by multiple entities, so if you…
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Osprey Nest at BRYC
Sunrise in Black Rock magic, not only does the early bird get the worm, in this case of this osprey, it’s building a nest on the far end of the dock at the Black Rock Yacht Club. There is another pair that have claimed the spot on top of the lighthouse in the background.
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Lone Ranger
Our first horseshoe crab rescue of the season at Seaside Park in Bridgeport near the base of the jetty, stranded on his back at low tide. We gently escorted him back to the water away from the crowds and the unleashed dogs which aren’t allowed on the beach at all but are often present. We…