Waterman
     I am a waterman.  I make my living on the water. I earn my living by catching fish or blue crabs or eel and conch. In the past couple of years there has been a lot of demand for conch. Many people in Asia really like to eat it. So lately I have been trying to catch conch. I need horseshoe crabs to use for bait.  It seems to me there are still a lot of horseshoe crabs around. I believe that we should continue harvesting them. No one has proven that the actual number is declining. If I don't have bait, how am I going to trap conch and make money to support my family? I only take what I am going to need.

Ornithologist
    I am an ornithologist. I like to watch birds. I am concerned about the survival of the migrating shorebirds that stop at Delaware Bay every spring on their way to the Arctic. These birds need to stop and eat the eggs that the horseshoe crabs lay along the shore of Delaware Bay, so they have enough energy to continue their flight north. The horseshoe crab eggs are the birds only source of energy. It seems to me like there have been less birds the last few years that I have gone out to watch them. I think that we should protect the horseshoe crabs. They are an important part of the ecosystem. If something happens to the horseshoe crabs, the birds suffer, too.

Biomedical Expert-Doctor
   I am a doctor, a biomedical-expert.  I think we should continue to use the horseshoe crab for the development and testing of vaccines and other medical uses.  Many, many people have benefited from horseshoe crab research. We can be sure our medicines are safe because they have been tested with the blood of a horseshoe crab. When we catch the crabs, we don't kill them. We just take some of their blood and release them. I'd like to make sure that there are enough crabs for medical research.

Member of the Fish and Game Commission
    I am a member of the State Fish and Game Commission. I say that we should try to balance the needs of all the groups involved. Our group cares about the watermen, the bird watchers, homeowners, and the bio-medical industry people. We try to keep all the groups happy.  We believe no group should benefit from the horseshoe crabs or take control of the crabs any more than the other group. But it is not easy to say who gets to harvest crabs and how many they get to take. It seems no matter what we do, someone is not happy.

World Expert on Horseshoe Crabs
   As a world expert on horseshoe crabs I think everyone should continue the study of horseshoe crabs.  I am interested in the research of horseshoe crabs.  I believe that horseshoe crabs are important to the ecosystem.

Property Owners
   As property owners, we believe we should have the freedom to use the beach.  We are interested in property values.  We believe we should have full use of our property since its ours and we bought it.

Now that you've read the above opinions, tell us whose views you argee with.