The Kite and the Snail: An Endangered Bird, Its Unlikely Prey, and a Story of Hope in a Changing World...

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Hilary Flower

The Kite and the Snail

Name: The Kite and the Snail
Price: 64.99 AUD
Availability: OutOfStock
ISBN: 9780813081496

An Endangered Bird, Its Unlikely Prey, and a Story of Hope in a Changing World

Hilary Flower

$64.99

Paperback

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English

University Press of Florida
31 March 2026

Endangered species & extinction of species; Wildlife: birds & birdwatching

The unexpected comeback of the endangered Everglade snail kite and what it means for other species facing extinction today

When a bird of prey known as the Everglade snail kite became hard to find in the wetlands of South Florida where it was once abundant, scientist Hilary Flower sought answers, tracking the kite far from its ancestral home to tell a surprising story of survival and hope. The Kite and the Snail reveals how one species made a comeback from the brink of extinction through resilience and change—and what this means for the future of conservation.

From remote sawgrass marshes to abandoned mining pits, from flooded cattle pastures to water-treatment impoundments, Flower meets field biologists, tribal elders, environmental advocates, and other key players who help her piece together the kite’s past and present. The Everglade snail kite has traditionally fed on only the native Florida apple snail, which declined in population as wetland habitats decreased during the mid- to late twentieth century. But the kite shocked scientists by adapting to a new food source—an invasive, exotic snail that is now common across the Everglades and beyond—and quadrupling the kites’ population.

A rare success story in an age of increasing threats of extinction, this book traces the evolutionary and ecological factors that have allowed the kite to thrive against the odds. The Kite and the Snail asks: How can endangered species be saved when the world around them keeps shifting? Part natural history, part investigative journey, and part personal meditation, this story shows that flexibility, surprise, and human-altered habitats may play unexpected roles in saving species at risk, pointing to new approaches to conservation in the age of the Anthropocene.

By: Hilary Flower
Imprint: University Press of Florida
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 14mm
ISBN: 9780813081496
ISBN 10: 0813081491
Pages: 246
Publication Date: 31 March 2026
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Hilary Flower is professor of environmental studies at Eckerd College, where she teaches about wetlands and global environmental change and researches how climate change and sea level rise affect the Everglades.