Overview
Topography
SFWMD Projects
History
Geology
Habitats
Wildlife
Water Resources
Water Quality
Physical
Weather
Web Links
FAQ's

Few places are as biologically rich as the south Florida ecosystem. Nearly 45 species of mammals, including 10 marine forms, frequent the Everglades and related bays, sounds, coastal estuaries and offshore waters. Hundreds of species of fish and thousands of species of marine, estuarine, and freshwater invertebrates ply the waters of the ecosystem. More than 50 kinds of reptiles, including the signature alligator and nearly 20 types of salamanders, frogs and toads live in the wetlands, proving that south Florida is crawling with strange creatures.

The Everglades is teaming with wildlife. Snail kites, peregrine falcons, wood storks, bald eagles, short-tailed hawks, smooth-billed anis, mangrove cuckos, tree snails, manatees, American crocodiles, Florida panthers and Cape Sable seaside sparrows are some of the rare fauna that inhabit the Everglades and Florida Bay. Perhaps no other animals represent the area's biological diversity and wealth better than the birds. Almost 350 species, both temperate and tropical, have been recorded.

The publics' strong desire to protect wading birds for future generations led to the ban on plume hunting in 1910 and the creation of Everglades National Park in 1947. In more recent times, endangered species like the Cape Sable seaside sparrow have emerged as one of the major factors driving water management decisions in the Everglades. Much of the litigation and controversy surrounding the effects of water management on wildlife populations stemmed from a poor understanding of the hydrologic needs of key species. This oversight was addressed in the Everglades Forever Act, which mandated that the District conduct research to understand the hydrologic and ecological needs of the Everglades.

The Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow

Native indicator species are used to assess system-wide ecological responses to land use change, Best Management Practice (BMP) implementation and the introduction of exotic plants and animals. Native indicator species include dominant terrestrial and aquatic plants, forage and sport fish, wading birds, waterfowl, and alligators. Indicator species within a habitat are monitored for population abundance, diversity and condition.

An understanding of the hydrologic needs of wading birds helped scientists define targets for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) and the response of wading birds to the Everglades restoration will be used as a measure of restoration success that will help to guide future management decisions. It is hoped that each Spring, the sight of flocks of wading birds gliding just above the sawgrass marshes of the Everglades as they carry food to their young, will be as much a part of tomorrow's Everglades as it was a century ago.

Wildlife Links

Wading Bird Response to Water Patterns in the Everglades:
http://www.sfwmd.gov/org/wrp/wrp_evg/projects/birds/bird_animation.html

Wading Bird Report:
http://www.sfwmd.gov/org/wrp/wrp_evg/projects/wading01/

Everglades/Florida Bay Wildlife
http://www.sfwmd.gov/org/wrp/wrp_evg/2_wrp_evg_eco/wildlife.html

Critters - SOFIA/USGS
http://sofia.usgs.gov/virtual_tour/kids/critters/index.html

Animal Profiles- Everglades National Park
http://www.nps.gov/ever/eco/profiles.htm

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission-Division of Wildlife
http://wld.fwc.state.fl.us/

Audubon of Florida - Bird FAQs & Links
http://www.audubonofflorida.org/main/faqs.htm

U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Wildlife Fact Sheets
http://species.fws.gov/

SFWMD website links: