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This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0037_01C86BDE.1BD980D0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Why save the Red Knot?=20 PBS flocks of shorebirds, the red knot is fairly average looking. In fact, = only the most practiced bird watchers may be able to distinguish this = medium-sized, plump peep from the thousands of other shorebirds playing = tag with the waves. Yet, somehow the red knot has caught the attention = of people around the world. The knot's dependence on the eggs of the heavily harvested horseshoe = crab has placed it at odds with another species -- humans. Conservation = groups, lawmakers, fishermen, scientists, and ordinary citizens have all = entered the debate. But even as our actions have imperiled the red knot, = we can also preserve the species, by regulating the fishing industry and = keeping clear of the beaches that the knots rely on during migration. = Where nature ranks in our system of values will dictate how far we are = willing to go to protect the red knot. There are millions of shorebirds in the world. Why all the clamor over = the red knot? How could this small bird stir up so much controversy and = inspire such extraordinary efforts on its behalf? To begin to answer = these difficult questions we must first become familiar with the red = knot. The red knot may blend in with the other small shorebirds, but it makes = a journey that certainly sets it apart. A master of long-distance = aviation, the red knot makes one of the longest migratory trips of any = bird -- 9,300 miles along the Atlantic flyway from its wintering grounds = in southern South America to its high Arctic breeding grounds. The = journey is so exhausting, it requires two to three stopovers for = refueling. The horseshoe crab egg feast they will consume at Delaware = Bay, is not just an indulgence -- it's absolutely crucial for the birds' = survival. When the knots arrive at Delaware Bay, their bodies are half = their starting weight, devoid of fat and even some muscle. Here, the red = knot will take about two weeks to double its weight so it can continue = its migration.=20 The migratory trip is far from the only risk the peeps take in their = lives. The life of the red knot is fraught with challenges. In their = wintering grounds of Tierra del Fuego, blinding gales blow up without = warning, and tides surge 25 and 35 feet every 12 hours. The challenges = facing the knots are even greater on the Arctic nesting grounds, where a = declining population of birds makes it more difficult to find a mate and = even if they do, a snowstorm can wipe out the knots' eggs. If the birds = don't consume enough eggs during their migratory stopover, they may not = have enough fuel to complete their trip, and those undernourished knots = that do make it to the Arctic will arrive weak and emaciated. Add the = fierce and unpredictable Arctic weather into the mix, and the birds are = likely to be in such a state that it is nearly impossible for them to = raise chicks.=20 Researchers tag red knots in 'Crash: A Tale of Two Species.'Nature, it = seems, has really stacked the deck against this creature. During its = migration, the red knot concentrates in huge, densely-packed flocks. = These enormous gatherings make the knots vulnerable to habitat = destruction and, in South America, hunting pressure. Sadly, it is not = just their eating preferences but their social patterns that put them at = odds with human activities. All of these hardships have given rise to dire statistics. The red knot = is a creature in peril. The U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan lists the = red knot as a "Species of High Concern," based on declining population = trends and threats on non-breeding grounds. In the last 20 years red = knots have declined from over 100,000 to less than 15,000. And in 2006, = the knot was named a candidate for Endangered Species Act protection as = an emergency measure to slow the rapid fall of its population. In the = Delaware Bay, the knot has suffered a decline so severe that some = experts predict the population stopping over at the bay could disappear = within five years.=20 Studies conducted outside of the U.S. do not paint a brighter picture. = Counts of knot populations wintering in South America dropped over 50% = from the mid-1980s to 2003. Researchers have suggested that the = continued hunting of knots in South America might be partly to blame. The red knot is one of the world's most amazing birds. But if that is = not sufficient motivation for us to save it, there are other incentives. = Chincoteague, Virginia, a popular stop-over for the red knot, finds that = what is good for migratory shorebirds is also good for Virginia = business. A recent tourism survey found that birders and ecotourists = were bringing in significant amounts of resources to the local economy. = And one economic study in South Jersey found that the shorebird-watching = industry generated nearly $36 million dollars in revenue for the area. Sadly, the issue raised in "Crash: A Tale of Two Species" over the = increased harvest of horseshoe crabs remains contentious today. Whether = the red knot will be able to continue to use Delaware Bay as a major = migratory staging area in the future is still up in the air -- as is the = fate of the knot.=20 For more information on red knot conservation efforts, visit = http://shorebirdproject.blogspot.com/, where Larry Niles (featured in = "Crash: A Tale of Two Species") and an international team of scientists = blog about the most recent news on the red knot. ------=_NextPart_000_0037_01C86BDE.1BD980D0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=3DContent-Type content=3D"text/html; = charset=3Diso-8859-1"> <META content=3D"MSHTML 6.00.6000.16587" name=3DGENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=3DArial>Why save the Red Knot? <BR>PBS</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=3DArial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=3DArial>flocks of shorebirds, the red knot is fairly = average=20 looking. In fact, only the most practiced bird watchers may be able to=20 distinguish this medium-sized, plump peep from the thousands of other = shorebirds=20 playing tag with the waves. Yet, somehow the red knot has caught the = attention=20 of people around the world.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=3DArial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=3DArial>The knot's dependence on the eggs of the heavily = harvested=20 horseshoe crab has placed it at odds with another species -- humans.=20 Conservation groups, lawmakers, fishermen, scientists, and ordinary = citizens=20 have all entered the debate. But even as our actions have imperiled the = red=20 knot, we can also preserve the species, by regulating the fishing = industry and=20 keeping clear of the beaches that the knots rely on during migr