Through Audubon’s recently launched virtual laboratory website, Restore Florida Bay, visitors will uncover the interactions between various ecological components of this estuary. The goal is to provide a clear understanding of how weather and water management practices affect the entire Florida Bay food chain, culminating with Roseate Spoonbill nest production. The site provides dynamic visuals of the Florida Bay ecosystem, and how its flora and fauna indicate the health of the Everglades. A series of videos introduces visitors to the research conducted at Audubon’s Tavernier Science Center and explains how the continuation of this data collection is critical in order to determine whether restoration projects deliver ecosystem benefits.

Support from the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund enabled the creation of this website, as well as provided Audubon scientists with the opportunity to further analyze existing data sets and more conclusively identify specific restoration targets for Florida Bay. Sixteen years of water quality, submerged aquatic vegetation, and fish community data will receive needed statistical analysis that will further Audubon’s goals of restoring more natural freshwater flows to the southern Everglades.

Visit RestoreFloridaBay.org to advance your knowledge of this ecological treasure and to learn of opportunities to advocate for its restoration. Share your personal story, pictures, and/or video describing why you love Florida Bay. Be sure to take the pledge to become a Florida Bay steward, submit any questions to our experts, and sign up to win a John James Audubon art print of a bird species found in the southern Everglades.