Spoonbills are not an endangered species. They are among the most numerous of water birds, with habitats all along the Gulf of Mexico. But about 90 percent of the state's spoonbills are found in Florida Bay. The bird is so closely linked to the restoration because the spoonbill feeds at the edges of the mainland, where fresh water spilling out of the Everglades meets the salty bay. Ninety percent of the birds' diet is tiny fish from mud flats and wetlands.
Spoonbills feed by sweeping their bills through shallow water, sucking in minnows as they go.
And more fish bring more spoonbills. Lorenz's research proved that fish populations increase dramatically as more water pours through the lower Everglades in summer. It's not just spoonbills we're talking about. There's a whole connection here. If the spoonbills do well, so do crocodiles and large game fish.