Snail kites are found across South and Central America, but in North America they reside solely in Florida. Historically they fed on Florida apple snails, but in 2004, island apple snails were introduced to the state from South America. At first, the birds couldn’t grasp the bigger snails because their beaks were too small, and scientists feared the population would continue to plummet. Now there are more than 2,000 snail kites in Florida and he is hopeful the population will continue to increase. “But the snail kites really challenge this assumption.”

Source: National Post November 28, 2017 19:45 UTC