South Florida's water managers are reporting some modest gains in wading bird nesting.
The South Florida Water Management District has released its annual report on wading bird nesting efforts. Officials say 2013 was a relatively average year with 48,291 nests.
According to the report, wood stork, white ibis and great egret nesting significantly improved last year. The number of roseate spoonbill nests in Florida Bay also increased for the second consecutive year.
However, other wading bird species that have shown steep declines in nesting in recent years did not show any improvement last year. Snowy egrets and tricolored and blue herons had significant declines, in particular.
A primary goal of Everglades restoration efforts is improving natural water flows to sustain healthy wading bird populations.
