Down but not out
In the wide-open marshes of central Florida, this broad-winged bird glides slowly and low over the sawgrass. It has no need for fast flight, because it seeks only snails -- and only one particular sort, the apple snail. This snail is strongly affected by water levels, and drainage of wetlands has hurt populations of both the snail and the kite. The Florida race of this bird, formerly called Everglades Kite, is now endangered. How ever in this particular spot there were about 7-8 active nests, and the Adults were working on building more of them. Unfortunately a lot of these nests have not been successful in past years due to the local rat snake population.
Down but not out
In the wide-open marshes of central Florida, this broad-winged bird glides slowly and low over the sawgrass. It has no need for fast flight, because it seeks only snails -- and only one particular sort, the apple snail. This snail is strongly affected by water levels, and drainage of wetlands has hurt populations of both the snail and the kite. The Florida race of this bird, formerly called Everglades Kite, is now endangered. How ever in this particular spot there were about 7-8 active nests, and the Adults were working on building more of them. Unfortunately a lot of these nests have not been successful in past years due to the local rat snake population.