Defenders of Wildlife Statement on Dismissal of Challenge to Cape Romain Refuge Management

Defenders of Wildlife celebrates today the dismissal of a challenge by the state of South Carolina to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s authority to manage horseshoe crab harvest at Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.

Jane Davenport, Senior Attorney with Defenders of Wildlife, released the following statement:

“National wildlife refuges like Cape Romain are the only federal lands dedicated exclusively to conserving our natural biodiversity heritage. Today’s decision affirms the Fish and Wildlife Service’s authority to manage the Refuge to protect shorebirds, like the threatened red knot, that depend on horseshoe crab eggs to power their migration and reproduction.”

The FWS determined that horseshoe crab harvest on the refuge is not compatible with the refuge’s purposes and halted it in 2023, following a 2020 lawsuit filed by Defenders of Wildlife to force the agency to comply with federal law governing national wildlife refuges. The state challenged the decision, asserting exclusive authority to manage commercial harvest of fish or shellfish on the refuge.

The South Carolina Attorney General’s Office filed the challenge shortly after the FWS compatibility determination last year.  

During spring migration, the threatened red knot stops at Cape Romain and other beaches to feast on horseshoe crab eggs during its long migration from South America to the Arctic. Overfishing of horseshoe crabs for use in biomedical testing deprives the red knot and other imperiled species of a vital food resource. The Southern Environmental Law Center represented Defenders of Wildlife in the 2020 lawsuit.