Good eating for migratory birds means millions of dollars from visiting birdwatchers in the Delaware Bayshore area, according to a recent report entitled, "Wildlife-Associated Recreation on the New Jersey Delaware Bayshore." Funded by NJDEP, the study was done in response to a concern that commercial over-harvesting of horseshoe crabs might lessen the number of migratory birds that stop to feed on horseshoe crab eggs in the Delaware Bay region every spring. The study reported that the Delaware Bay area receives up to $11.8 million in economic benefits from birdwatchers who come for a few days every year to view the birds, and further reported that the birdwatchers would not come if the number of birds making the stop dropped significantly. These economic benefits further evidence the array of interests underlying Coastal Zone Management regulations, such as the Critical Wildlife Habitats policy, under which development that would adversely affect stopover habitats for migratory birds is discouraged.
