The Everglades is an internationally recognized iconic, wetland threatened by water extraction, channelization, and anthropogenic nutrient enrichment. It is a large oligotrophic, karstic wetland with seasonal climate influenced by its location at the southern tip of the Florida peninsula between the subtropical Western Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, notable for the large breeding aggregations of pelicaniform and ciconiiform wading birds it supported historically. Though greatly reduced, large populations of these birds still nest there, and a major restoration program is under way in an effort to reclaim some of its lost ecological functions. Aquatic invertebrates play a critical role in linking the physical features of this ecosystem to apex predators through their place in the food web. This chapter reviews the ecological linkages of aquatic invertebrates of the Everglades to the remarkable accumulation of periphyton in complex mats and their role as prey for higher trophic levels. It also explores the role of aquatic invertebrates in some of the challenges confronting managers and scientists involved in the restoration process. Despite those fundamental roles, aquatic invertebrate systematics, distribution, and ecology remain poorly understood and documented. More work on biodiversity and ecological processes is needed to fully understand their importance in the Everglades.
