Florida Spoonbills at Dawn

Roseate Spoonbills are very social; they group up to feed in shallow waters. Unfortunately, populations of these beautiful birds in Florida are... more

by Spadecaller

Title

Florida Spoonbills at Dawn

Artist

Spadecaller

Medium

Digital Art - Digital & Photographic Art

Description

Roseate Spoonbills are very social; they group up to feed in shallow waters. Unfortunately, populations of these beautiful birds in Florida are declining in the estuary sandwiched between the Everglades, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Keys. Poor water management in the Everglades has dramatically altered water depths and salinity levels in Florida Bay. For a wading bird on a special diet, this is life threatening. Wildlife conservation biologist, Mac Stone cautions: “if you don’t protect the water—the life source—coming to it, you’ve got nothing. You can put up as many fences, signs, whatever. None of it matters if you don’t have the water.”

After years of hunting, restoration of spoonbill populations have begun to occur. However, habitat loss due to climate change is an ever-increasing threat. Spring heat waves endanger young birds in nests and the rising sea level is depleting habitable coastal areas.

In addition to the precarious existence of these beautiful birds, there’s more at stake. The Florida Bay and the greater Everglades provides millions of dollars to the state’s economy through recreation, tourism, and commercial fishing; this has activated teams of scientists. The survival of the spoonbills will only come with the survival of the everglades. “Spoonbills have become the indicator for the overall health of the Everglades,” explains Stone. “They’re representative of the whole ecosystem. They require the fish, and the fish require the submerged aquatic vegetation, and the submerged aquatic vegetation requires the input of freshwater.” The warning is quite clear; “As goes the spoonbill, so goes the bay.”

“Florida Spoonbills at Dawn” is a hand-painted digital image and photo composite created in Spadecaller’s Florida Studio on 9/1/2023.

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Uploaded

September 1st, 2023