Is a recommendation to upgrade the wood storks status premature given the low numbers of nesting pairs in 2007?
A6: The 2007 nesting season was affected by the 100 year drought conditions that the Southeast U. S. is experiencing with preliminary data indicating around 5,000 nesting pairs as compared to more than 10,000 in 2006. However, the long reproductive lifespan of the wood stork allows it to tolerate reproductive failure in some years, and naturally occurring events (prolonged drought or unseasonably heavy rainfall) have undoubtedly always affected the breeding success of this species. Q7: How do you address concerns that the wood stork’s reproduction in the Everglades and Big Cypress Ecosystems which is still very sporadic and related low nesting numbers that have only slightly increased since listing and not approached nesting goals for that region? A7: The Service review notes this as a concern but adds that the overall distribution of wood storks is also in transition. The wood stork appears to have adapted to changes in habitat in South Florida in part by expanding its breeding range
