Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission 
                           NEWS RELEASE 
                           
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                      PRESS CONTACT: Tina Berger 
NOVEMBER 20, 1997                          (202)289-6400

States Commit to Regional Fishery Management Plan for Horseshoe Crab

On November 17, 1997, the States of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and
Virginia agreed to commit the necessary resources to develop a fishery
management plan (FMP) for the horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus)
through the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission).
Concern for the horseshoe crab resource has grown in recent years due to
increased harvest levels and the impacts of these harvest levels on the
horseshoe crab population and other species dependent on the horseshoe
crabs such as shorebirds that migrate through Delaware Bay each spring.

The States committed staff and planning funds to complete the FMP by
October 1998. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine
Fisheries Service also committed to working with the states and the
Commission in providing staff and scientific support to the FMP
development process. In attendance were the Secretaries of Natural
Resources from Delaware and New Jersey, Assistant Secretary of Natural
Resources from Maryland, Marine Fisheries Directors from New Jersey,
Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, and representatives of the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service.

Christopher A. Tulow, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Natural
Resources and Environmental Control, said "I am speaking for the States
of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia, as well as the federal
fisheries management agencies, in saying that we are committed to
completing a cooperative regional fishery plan that protects horseshoe
crabs, shorebirds, and the needs of a sustainable horseshoe crab
fishery. The States are aware that the horseshoe crab provides a medical
compound critical to maintaining the safety of many drugs used in
medical practice. This plan will be based on available scientific data
and will be developed with input from interested members of the
public."

The plan process will begin with a stock assessment of horseshoe crabs
which will address appropriate harvest levels to sustain both the
horseshoe crab resource and shorebird populations dependent on horseshoe
crab eggs during the spring migration. The draft FMP is scheduled to be
available in early June, with public hearings in June and July, and
final plan approval slated for October 1998. The States of Delaware,
Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia have already taken significant steps
in protecting horseshoe crabs and will continue to strengthen these
conservation measures when the FMP is completed. Other States from
Florida to Maine are also interested in horseshoe crab management
because of current fisheries or potential increases in effort due to
fishing restrictions in the mid-Atlantic region.

For more information, please contact: George Lapointe, Director,
interstate Fisheries Management Program, at (202)289-6400, ext. 316.