The avifauna of constructed treatment wetlands in South Florida used for Everglades restoration

Constructed treatment wetlands invariably create wildlife habitat (Kadlec and Knight 1996, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1999, Knight et al. 2001). Habitat improvement can be dramatic, especially when these systems are built on degraded areas such as farm fields (Hickman 1994). The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have built a complex of large treatment wetlands, known as Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs), on reclaimed farmland in south Florida as part of a multi-billion dollar effort by State and Federal governments to protect and restore the Everglades (Chimney and Goforth 2001, Sklar et al. 2005, SFWMD 2006). Current plans call for the STAs to encompass more than 17,000 ha. These wetlands were designed to treat and reduce high phosphorus concentrations in stormwater runoff from the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) before this water enters the northern portion of the remaining Everglades, the Water Conservation Areas (WCAs) (Fig. 1). The STAs have attracted a high abundance and diversity of wildlife species, including many birds. This paper presents a checklist of the avifauna found in two of the STAs and compares STA bird community composition and species richness with regional and other treatment wetlands.