[SEMCO] Horseshoe Crab Festival on Cape Cod

[Melissa Lowe]

HORSESHOE CRAB FESTIVAL
Saturday, May 26 & Sunday, May 27, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

Celebrate the seasonal return of Horseshoe Crabs to our shores!  Each
spring hundreds of Horseshoe Crabs spawn and lay eggs on local beaches.
Among the oldest living creatures on Earth, Horseshoe Crabs are an
important part of our cultural and natural world.  Their eggs provide
food for marine life and migrating shorebirds, the adults are collected
by people to be used as bait for eels and conch, and their blood is
valued in the medical community.   We will celebrate the natural and
cultural importance of these “ancient mariners” with the Horseshoe Crab
Festival which features activities for children and adults.

This festival is sponsored by the Massachusetts Audubon Society’s
Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary will be held at the Wellfleet Bay
Wildlife Sanctuary and among the activities featured will be: on-going
educational exhibits, crafts for kids, and art exhibit by local artist
Louise Russel;  scheduled field walks and trips with scientists,
including Dr. Robert Barlow of Marine Biological Lab, Joan Walsh
formerly of NJ Audubon, and Wellfleet Bay’s Kathy Tuxbury;  lunch-time
lectures by Dr. Michael Dawson of Associates of Cape Cod on Saturday and
Bob Prescott of Wellfleet Bay on Sunday;  and regularly scheduled games
and hikes for kids.

Most of the activities are free and don't require pre-registration (with
the exception of canoe trip, Monomoy Tour, and Marine Life Cruise).  For
more information contact the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary at
508-349-2615.

--
Melissa Lowe
Education Coordinator
Massachusetts Audubon Society
Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
P.O. Box 236, South Wellfleet, MA 02663
508-349-2615 (phone)   508-349-2632 (fax)
mlowe@wellfleetbay.org