No Hordes Of Horseshoe Crabs But A Nice Visit To Slaughter Beach, Delaware.

I visited Slaughter Beach, in our first State , Delaware,   for  the first time last weekend. I almost spent the weekend at Longwood Gardens,   in Pennsylvania,  another great weekend get away,  but a friend reminded me of the yearly spawning of the ancient  horseshoe crabs in  the Delaware Bay.   Horseshoe crabs and the ocean sounded exciting so I was off to Delaware after a few appointments at  the office last  Friday.

So, after a 3 hour and 181 mile drive I arrived in rural Delaware and drove to the DuPont Nature Center located on the Mispillion River  at the southern end of Slaughter Beach.  This was another last  minute trip and I didn’t do a lot of research on the horseshoe crabs. I only read this on Google AI  “The Delaware Bay hosts the largest spawning population of horseshoe crabs in the world. Peak spawning occurs in May and June  coinciding  with daily high tides during new and full moons, with the highest concentrations occurring at night.”  I also read Slaughter Beach and the DuPont Naure Center  were some of the best places to observe the spawning.   So I was at the Dupont Nature Center around 2 p.m.

I walked up to the observation deck where there were folks with binoculars looking for birds in the distance. I soon learned this was not the best time or place to see the horseshoe crabs up close or get photos of the birds that feed on their eggs.

They only photo I got from the observation deck

was this ring-billed gull sitting on a pier post. I learned  a lot about the area and the nearby hiking trails from  one of the volunteers at the nature center. He  told me  about some hiking trail in Prime Hook and that I could see some horseshoe crabs at Slaughter Beach located  a few miles away.

I saw some shore birds in the marsh on the drive in so I decided to walk on the road near the nature center to look for some bird activity. 

I  did see dozens of noisy red-winged black birds in the reeds and trees along the road. This is a male,

and this a female.  I am very  familar with their call from my walks in the wetlands near my home in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

I also saw quite a few willets on my walk,

some  wading in the shallow waters where the Mispillion River enters the Delaware Bay,

and others flying overhead.

I also saw a few boat-tailed grackles. I have only seen these noisy birds on my Winter visits to Florida. I learned they are year long residents all along the Atlantic coast.

It turned out to be a nice walk for seeing birds, I saw this greater yellowlegs swimming in the bay,

a flock of semipalmated sandpipers  scurrying along  the shore,

a great blue heron

and this seaside sparrow in the reeds. It was the first sighting for me.

I only saw one dead horseshoe crab,

and no turtles,

but it was still a productive walk.

I left the DuPont Nature  Center and drove  a few miles to Slaughter Beach. I came to Bay Avenue the only street in this town of 200 residents that was founded in 1681.  Modest  homes lined Bay Avenue along the ocean. It  was so much different then the crowded residential communities along the New Jersey Shore.  I drove to the last public access parking area and walked down to the beach expecting to see some horseshoe crabs.

There were none. I thought I would at least see some dead ones. After walking about 1/4 mile I found two. I learned later why this may be. When I visited Pickering Beach later on this trip a woman was walking the beach tossing stranded crabs back into the bay. She said many folks volunteer to do this in  the morning, saving the crab and keeping the beach clean.

I was disappointed, again, not seeing the hoards of horseshoe crabs, but did see large flocks of hundreds of semipalmated sandpipers.

I was surprised to see dozens of red-winged blackbirds, and

common grackles foraging for food along the beach. I see many of these birds on my hikes in Pennsylvania but it was so unusual for meto see them next to the waves along the bay

I walked along the beach past the modest but well maintained homes. I believe the folks reside here year long. 

There were   some old wooden piers in the bay,

and this crab trap which washed up on the beach.

After about a mile I came to the main public beach access. Here I saw some placards with information about the spawning horseshoe crabs and how the town of Slaughter Beach  has  made their town a sanctuary beach for this ancient species. Horseshoe crabs have been around for 450 million years, long before the dinosaurs walked our planet. And horseshoe crabs are not  crabs but actually marine arthropods more closely related to spiders and scorpions. 

There were now more people on the beach, and this unusual sight, a snow goose.

These geese winter here and along the Atlantic coast but should be breeding in the tundras of Canada now. I am guessing this one was injured so didn’t make the migration.

It was now late afternoon and on the way I saw the purple martins returning to the nesting houses along the beach. These birds amaze me, traveling from northern South America where they spend the Winter.

An  osprey

and turkey vulture flew overhead,

and I saw a sea turtle as I ended my hike. I had never seen on on the Atlantic coast  before.

I finished my 2 mile hike, finally finding  a seashell in the sand,

and drove about a mile to the  Marvel Salt Marsh Preserve. This nature preserve protects 109 acres of tidal saltwater marsh land. Many birds, crabs and mollusks live in the marsh.

There are no hiking trails in the preserve, only a small boardwalk with an observation deck ,overlooking the marsh,

and an osprey nesting platform. with a nesting osprey.

The boardwalk continues to an area with seats   to watch the sunset over the marsh. 

Since there were no hiking trails in the preserve  I  walked down  to the beach. The were more dunes here beyond the  homes.

I hiked along the  natural  beach for about a mile, seeing  more red-winged black birds, semipalmated sandpipers, common grackles and this spotted sandpiper.   Here is a link to a gallery on my web-page with some more photos of the  birds I saw on my walks.  Delaware: Slaughter Beach birds May 29 2026.

I also saw lush growths of native American searocket, and

prickly pear cacti,

some blooming with yellow flowers.

It  was now around 5 p.m. and it was along day. I drove over to my hotel, the Hampton Inn in Milford and after a shower I decided to eat at the Chaiyo Sushi and Thai  restaurant. I had nice meal starting with miso soup,  and a ginger salad,

with salmon teriyaki,  rice and steamed vegetables as my main course. It was very good and filling.

It was a long day, appointments at my law office, a 3 drive and over 5 miles of hiking. Although I wanted to drive back to Slaughter Beach to see if the horseshoe crabs would show up I decided to sleep after editing some photos. I set my alarm clock for 5 a.m. I hoped to get to the beach and watch the sunrise, and see home horseshoe crabs. Here is a link to a gallery on my web-page with some more photos of the  birds I saw on my walks at the Dupont Nature Center and Slaughter Beach .  Delaware: Slaughter Beach May 29 2026.

“The calming movement of the sea along with the restless ocean breeze gently caresses me creating a soothing trance which lulls me to a place of peace.” – M. L. Borges