Ecosystem Importance
This wetland provides fresh water to 8 million people
What is Florida Everglades?
The Everglades are located in this U.S. state
What is Florida?
Engineers built these structures that disrupted the natural flow of water.
What are canals and dams?
This term describes the variety of living organisms in an ecosystem.
What is biodiversity?
These constructed wetlands help remove pollutants from water entering the Everglades.
What are stormwater treatment areas? (STA)
The Everglades help reduce the impact of these natural disasters
What are storms and floods?
The Everglades are known for having this type of land surface
What is extremely flat land?
Runoff from these farming chemicals polluted Everglades waters.
What are fertilizers?
These birds have experienced major population declines due to habitat changes.
What are wading birds?
This restoration project is commonly known as CERP
What is the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan?
The Everglades trap greenhouse gases and act this type of regulating system
What is a carbon sink
Water moves through the Everglades in a slow-moving "sheet flow" that is approximately this many miles wide.
What is 100 miles?
Large areas of wetlands were converted into these two land uses.
What are neighbourhoods and sugarcane fields?
Invasive species compete with native plants for these three resources.
What are space, water, and nutrients?
Farmers use these practices to reduce phosphorus pollution.
What are Best Management Practices (BMPs)?
This international organization recognizes the Everglades as a World Heritage Site.
What is UNESCO?
This type of rock acts like a sponge and helps filter water underground
What is limestone?
This invasive snake species has caused severe declines in native wildlife.
What is a Burmese Python?
A major consequence of biodiversity loss is that ecosystems become less able to do this.
What is recover from environmental changes?
Individuals can help the Everglades by reducing this type of household contamination.
What is pollution?
The Everglades are one of the only places where these two large reptiles coexist naturally
What are alligators and crocodiles?
Because Florida lies where tropical and temperate climates meet, the Everglades support this unusual reptile combination.
What are alligators and tropical crocodiles living together?
Human water management has reduced the Everglades to roughly this fraction of its original size.
What is about 50%?
According to the research, native mammal populations have declined by up to this percentage due to Burmese pythons.
What is 99%?
Despite improvements in water quality, achieving this remains the long-term goal.
What is full ecosystem recovery?