Dupont Nature Center speaks on Endangered Species on the Bay

Slaughter Beach

DELAWARE – Natural resources officials say the environment is declining. Today marks National Endangered Species Day, and there is a threat to animals in and around Delaware Bay.

Many species in Delaware have been here for millions of years and have shaped the environment we see today. Dupont Nature Center manager Patrick Ruhl says humans have been harming it for years. “Just be aware of how you affect the habitat around us… An endangered species is a species we’re worried about becoming extinct from this planet, and a lot of this is indeed caused by human action ways we interact with the environment and wildlife have endangered species for centuries.”

Ruhl tells us that one species that is declining around the bay, especially in our marshy and coastal areas is the Diamondback Terrapin, and that’s not the only species they’re watching. “We’re keeping close eyes on different fish species, and then another one we really stress about keeping an eye on is our horseshoe crabs as well. We have, for a long time, fighting to keep their population stable here in the Delaware Bay.”

Endangered species come in two categories Ruhl explains the Federal List includes all endangered species. The Delaware list has animals that are potentially endangered or threatened in the state. “On the federal list, the ones that we can find here of course are Red Knots, which are threatened… They’re migrating from all over the globe as you can see, some from as far south as the bottom tip of South America, and they’re here for just a brief period of time.”

Naturalist Ashley Cole says while working at the center for the last 2 years. She’s been inspired by the fact that one small event can have a lasting impression on the entire world. “The way that food webs, the ecosystem is, it’s a very delicate system, and if one little thing were to disappear, it could send the rest of the ecosystem into shock.”