Nunavut calls for public input on red knot recovery plan

The Nunavut Wildlife Management Board (NWMB) has opened a public hearing to allow for submission of written comments in response to Environment and Climate Change Canada – Canadian Wildlife Service’s Recovery Strategy and Management Plan for the Red Knot (Calidris canutus) in Canada. The public hearing is part of NWMB’s decision process regarding the approval of the proposed recovery plan. The red knot is currently listed under the Species at Risk Act (SARA) as endangered following the steep decline in the population around 2000. The plan discusses several threats faced by the species, including a reduction in one of the primary components of their diet, horseshoe crab eggs. According to the recovery plan, overharvesting of horseshoe crabs in Delaware Bay — a key stopover site for red knots — negatively impacts the birds as they head northward to Canada to roost.

NWMB is accepting written submission and supporting documentation through Aug. 4.

Read more at CBC News.