![]() However, this species is not generally threatened over its extensive range. Research has demonstrated that water-level control in the Everglades is depleting the population of apple snails. The snail kite is a locally endangered species in the Florida Everglades, with a population of less than 400 breeding pairs. It nests in a bush or on the ground, laying 3–4 eggs. It is resident all-year in most of its range, but the southernmost population migrates north in winter and the Caribbean birds disperse widely outside the breeding season. The snail kite breeds in tropical South America, the Caribbean, and central and southern Florida in the United States. Photo: Dario Sanches from SÃO PAULO, BRASIL / CC BY-SA 2.0 / en. For this reason, it is considered a molluscivore. It flies slowly with its head facing downwards, looking for its main food, the large apple snails. The immature is similar to adult female, but the crown is streaked. She has a whitish face with darker areas behind and above the eye. The adult female has dark brown upperparts and heavily streaked pale underparts. The adult male has dark blue-gray plumage with darker flight feathers. The tarsus is relatively long as well, measuring 3.6–5.7 cm (1.4–2.2 in). ![]() ![]() The dark, deeply hooked beak, measuring 2.9–4 cm (1.1–1.6 in) is an adaptation to its diet. ![]() Its tail is long, at 16–21 cm (6.3–8.3 in), with a white rump and undertail coverts. They have long, broad, and rounded wings, which measure 29–33 cm (11–13 in) each. There is very limited sexual dimorphism, with the female averaging only 3% larger than the male. They weigh from 300 to 570 g (11 to 20 oz). Snail kites are 36 to 48 cm (14 to 19 in) long with a 99–120 cm (39–47 in) wingspan. ![]()
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