KSC-05PD-2168

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. — The striated reflection of a roseate spoonbill is the only sign of the water it stands in. The bird was spotted on Blackpoint Wildlife Drive in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, northwest of NASA Kennedy Space Center. Spoonbills inhabit areas of mangrove such as on the coasts of southern Florida and Texas. These birds feed on shrimps and fish in the shallow water, sweeping their bills from side to side. This and other wildlife abound throughout KSC as it shares a boundary with the Wildlife Refuge, home to some of the nation’s rarest and most unusual species of wildlife. The wildlife refuge is a habitat for more than 310 species of birds, 25 mammals, 117 fishes and 65 amphibians and reptiles. In addition, the Refuge supports 19 endangered or threatened wildlife species on Federal or State lists, more than any other single refuge in the U.S.