FOR WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY and NATURE NOTES. Can't let a season in Florida go by without posting something about our native wood storks. We could hardly believe what we were seeing when we first saw these odd-looking ungainly birds four years ago.
Because of loss of shallow wetlands in South Florida, due to agriculture and over-building, this species has been on the endangered species list since 1984. These pictures were taken in April at Big Cypress but during the winter months, we even see them feeding in ditches and canals. Because they are so frequently seen, there's a big push on to take them off the endangered list.
However, according to stork researcher Jason Lauritsen, assistant director at Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, the birds searching for food in those city ditches are not nesting birds. They are merely biding time, waiting for the return of quality wetlands. The birds depend on shallow wetlands for foraging early in their breeding season (winter, the dry season here). Lack of good foraging causes later breeding and nesting and when nests are started late in the season they usually fail.
A healthy population of breeding storks would be a sign that ongoing efforts to restore the Everglades is succeeding, but according to Lauritsen, the species is far from meeting the criteria to be considered fully recovered.
An article by Jason Lauritsen in the Fort Myers News Press was the information source.
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