Authors:

Samantha Hinsz

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Understanding factors that drive nesting in endangered species is essential for guiding management aimed at species recovery. The Everglade snail kite, Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus, is a federally endangered raptor that inhabits flooded freshwater wetlands and shallow lakes in Florida. They are an extreme dietary specialist and feed almost exclusively on apple snails (Pomacea spp.). Snail kite nest abundance is limited by available habitat and vegetation structure, each of which influence the availability of apple snails and suitable nesting substrate. Two management strategies that affect wetland habitat structure are prescribed burns and herbicide treatments. Our objective was to determine if prescribed burn and herbicide treatments explained variation in snail kite nest initiation (i.e., the number of nests initiated inside a treatment area per month) in Lake Okeechobee between 2013 and 2023. Lake Okeechobee is at the center of the snail kites' range and represents a critical stopover point for snail kites moving between wetlands. We used 11 years of management and nest initiation data, including five burns and twelve herbicide treatments. Treatments had a mean size of 3,254 acres. Time since treatment and size of treatment had explained snail kite nest initiation rates, with nest initiation decreasing as time since treatment increased and increasing number of nests with increasing treatment size. These results can help inform future management decisions in coordination with snail kite conservation efforts. Investigating the Relationship between Prescribed Burn and Herbicide Treatment and Snail Kite

Source:

University of Florida / Samantha Hinsz, Meghan A. Beatty, Robert J. Fletcher Jr. / 2023

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Co-authors:

Samantha Hinsz