4. Please provide reasonable assurances that the proposed project will not jeopardize the abundance and diversity of wetland-dependent wildlife and listed species and their habitats pursuant to the Environmental Criteria in Section 10.2.2, Vol. I. Please provide any correspondence received from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and any management plans, as appropriate. During the permitting efforts for all Federal, State and Local agencies, the environmental consultant has received no comments from FWC or USFWS regarding wetland dependent species. Lee County has requested information and that response is attached. Wading Bird Biology Influencing Dry Detention Area - Alico Lakeside Biological Information Description The herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, and storks comprise the wading birds of Florida (GFC 1991). Although never accurately estimated, the total population of wading birds in Florida is believed to have fluctuated greatly over the years. Historically, many wading birds were hunted for their plumage, resulting in a drastic population decline in the early 1900s. Since that time, the populations rebounded, but a second drastic decline occurred, as estimated in 1970. The second population decline has been attributed to wetland alteration and destruction. Most recently, the population decline of wading birds in south Florida has been "attributed to degradation and loss of feeding habitat rather than loss of rookery habitat, hunting, or harassment" (GFC 1991). Wood storks are discussed in a separate section of this report (federally listed species). The snowy egret (Egretta thula), the white ibis (Eudocimus albus), the roseate spoonbill (Ajaia ajaja), and two herons (Egretta caerulea and E. tricolor) are known to occur in the general areas that the proposed Phase IV project corridor traverses. These five species are listed as "species of special concern" by the GFC, the FWS does not list any of these birds. Snowy egret (Egretta thula) This bird is a medium-small, all white wading bird, often described as "dainty" in stature (Ogden in Rodgers. Kale and Smith 1996). The snowy egret is approximately 60 cm (24 inches) in length with a wingspan of 1 m (39 inches). The bill and legs are black, while the iris, lores, and feet are yellow. Skin color on the lores and feet changes to orange-red or red on adults during courtship. Breeding adults exhibit prominent white plumes on the head, neck, and scapulars, which are recurved and extend across the back to the tail. Plumes on non-breeding adults and immature birds are much less conspicuous or totally lacking. White ibis (Eudocimus albus) The white ibis is a medium-sized wading bird of approximately 56-cm total length with a 96-cm wingspan (Frederick in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). The most distinct feature is the long down-curved bill. Plumage of adults is white except for the black extremities of the four longest primaries. (1n some lighting conditions the coloration of these extremities appears iridescent dark green.) The soft parts of adults are fleshy pink and become bright red before and during the short courtship period. White ibises are considerably sexually dimorphic with males up to 30% larger than females. The bill length is the most obvious difference in size between the two sexes. Post-fledgling birds have dark brown wings, neck, head, tail, and irides, white backs (evident when flying), and gray legs during their first year. Near the end of their first year, juveniles begin to acquire white plumage with sparse brown feathers remaining on their head and neck at the end of their second year. By the end of the third year, all brown has molted out. Roseate spoonbill (Ajaiaaiaja) The roseate spoonbill is a long-legged wading bird with a spatulate bill. It is the only spoonbill native to the Western Hemisphere (Bjork and Powell in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). They stand about 80 cm (31 inches) high and have a wingspan of 1.3 m (51 inches) with a weight of 1,225 -1,800 grams. Adult plumage of birds greater than three years of age is quite variable: rose-pink on the back, wings, and lower breast; carminecolored lesser wing and upper and under tail coverts; a white neck and upper breast with a patch of stiff, curly carmine feathers at the base of the neck; yellowish wash on the breast adjacent to the bend-of-wing; an unfeathered head of pale green to golden-buff, with a line of black skin around the ears and back of head that sometimes extends as a "V" down the back of the neck; grayish-green to grayish-tan bill; and orange-buff tail. Birds that are one to 12 months of age are uniformly pale pink with fully feathered, white heads and necks and dark-tipped outer primaries. At one to three years of age, birds are intermediate in color, become bareheaded, and acquire the black line on the head at year two. Sexes are morphologically similar. Roseate spoonbills extend their necks straight forward with the legs trailing behind during flight. Flying patterns consist of wing flapping alternating with short glides, in contrast to the white ibis that has a more rapid wing beat. Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea) The little blue heron is a medium-sized ardeid approximately 64-74 cm (25-29 inches) in length with a wingspan of about 1 m (40 inches) (Rodgers in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). Body measurements and plumage are similar for both sexes. The adult plumage consists of purplish-maroon head and neck with a small whitish region on the throat and upper neck. The remainder of the plumage is slate-blue with the distal third of the bill being black and the balance of the bill being pale yellow to grayish-green. The legs are grayish-green during the non-breeding season and black during the breeding season. During the breeding season, the plumes of the crest, lower neck, and the back become long lanceolate. The immature little blue heron is mostly white with pale slate-gray tips on the primaries (Rodgers in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). This feature is unique among the dark plumaged ardeids. The immature little blue heron has yellow-green legs and begins to acquire the dark plumage during their first spring, becoming "pied" or "calico." The areas of the crest, lower neck, and back are slowly replaced with dark plumage while the secondaries and primaries are replaced in symmetry. Breeding subadults attain the cobalt-blue soft-part colors on the bill and orbital skin, but the legs typically remain yellow-green. The full adult plumage is reached by the second year. Tricolored heron (Egretta tricolor) The tricolored heron is a medium-sized heron at 65 cm (25 inches) in length with a long, slim neck, and two-toned color pattern (Ogden in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). Adults have dark slate-colored heads, necks, and bodies except for a white rump, belly, and undertail coverts. The front of the neck has a white and rufous streak. Head plumes and elongated feathers on the lower neck and chest are purplish in color. The legs, feet, base of the bill, and bare facial skin are all yellow, with the bill darkening to dusky at the tip. During breeding, the adults have long, whitish head plumes and rufous to whitish mantle plumes. Soft parts also change color, with the bill and facial skin turning aquablue, the iris turning magenta, and the legs becoming orange-red. Immature tricolored herons, up to about one year in age, are extensively reddish-brown on the head and neck, brownish on the mantle, and white in the same areas as adults. Typically, young birds lack plumes. Distribution and Habitat Snowy egret (EQretta thula) Snowy egrets were extensively hunted for their plumes in the late 19`h and early 20`h centuries throughout North, Central, and South America (Ogden in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). They became quite rare or were even locally extirpated in much of their range. Although no population data exists for snowy egrets outside the United States, they are believed to have recovered from the plume-hunting days and are considered to be fairly common to common in many regions of Central and South America. The snowy egret was a common nesting species along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, throughout Florida, and on the Atlantic coast as far north as New Jersey (Ogden in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). Following the post-plume hunting days, the snowy egret rapidly recovered in most regions, even though they were extirpated or became rare in some locations during the plume-hunting era. Within Florida, the number of nesting snowy egrets has been declining since the 1950s. Snowy egrets in Florida nest in both coastal and inland wetlands, commonly in mangroves or willows (Ogden in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). Nesting also occurs in many woody species of shrubs and small trees, including Australian pine, cypress, pond apple, Brazilian pepper, buttonbush, and elderberry. Nearly all nesting occurs over shallow expanses of open water. Foraging takes place in a wide variety of permanently and seasonally flooded marshes, swamps, lake and stream shorelines, and water impoundments, even in temporarily flooded ditches and agricultural fields. Typically, the water is relatively shallow and calm. Snowy egrets also feed in upland grasslands and at the edges of the surf along beaches. White ibis (Eudocimus albus) White ibises are common breeding species in the coastal plain of the southeastern United States from North Carolina through Texas (Frederick in Rodgers, Kale and Smith 1996). Their range extends throughout wetland habitats of Central America and northern South America to the northern coast of Brazil.