The Amazing Wildlife of
Florida’s Western Everglades

Wildlife Thrives In the Western Everglades

The mosaic of wetland ecosystems that form the western Everglades hosts a myriad of fascinating walking, swimming, and flying species - a few dating back to the dinosaurs. Get ready to meet Florida's WILD BIG FIVE,.

Florida’s Wild Big Five

Just like an African safari is symbolized by lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino, the Florida ‘glades sports its own iconic Big Five.

The Western Everglades is also one of the only places on Earth where you can experience crocodiles AND alligators (living dinosaurs) in the wild on the same day and then see a manatee (elephant's cousin), spot roseate spoonbill, watch a black bear cross the road, and track Florida’s own charismatic Big Cat, the Florida panther, living life in the wild. And that is only the beginning.

This part of Florida is a haven for migrating birds, sea turtles, dolphins, saw fish, and … well, read on.

Oh yes! Interested in being part of the conservation community? We have found plenty of Citizen Science opportunities to participate in too. The Western Everglades are pure magic. To begin, let’s take a look at Florida’s Wild Big Five.

Count Down! Florida’s Wild Big Five:
#5: American Alligator

No visit to the Everglades is complete without an alligator sighting. The largest reptile in North America can be traced back millions of years. American alligators are ubiquitous in Florida’s wetlands, thriving in the brackish water of the marshes.  These living fossils rest during the day so the waters look empty and inviting, but stay out! Alligators are highly territorial. While attacks on humans are rare, they do occur, usually due to human error. 

'Gators are big.  Males can reach 14 feet (4.3m), and weigh in at over 1000 pounds (453.5kg),  females may grow to 9 feet (2.7m). 

Did you see a strange looking ‘gator? It might be a crocodile!
Far less common than alligators, Florida lists them as Threatened, but Federally crocs are still listed as Endangered.

Crocs AND 'Gators? This MUST be southwest Florida!
Crocs and 'gators in the same area? The only place in the world where alligators and crocodiles can be found together is south Florida, where salt and fresh water mix. The area around Everglades City has great crocodile spotting potential! 

What’s the Difference Between Alligators and Crocodiles?

Look at their snouts for a fast ID.
The almost U-shaped snout of an alligator is more rounded than that of a crock.  When its mouth is closed, the alligator’s teeth are almost hidden by its wider upper jaw.

A crocodile’s snout is more pointed, V-shaped and its teeth are more pronounced as they stick up over the upper “lip.” And, unlike alligators, crocodiles like to sun with their mouths open. Their coloring is different too, crocodiles are a more gray-green compared to the darker, blackish alligator. 

The Best Place to Look for Alligators

Any place there is water - and that is every place near and around Everglades City. Crocodilians (both 'gators and crocks) are top predators and not shy. Big Cypress National Preserve is an almost guaranteed alligator sighting area.  Driving?  Look along the roadside for sunning alligators. For a close encounter, take a kayak tour! Read this 

 To see crocodiles you need to be where salt meets fresh water - the 10,000 Islands National Wildlife Refuge is perfect.

Spotting Hint:
In the water look for eyes and the tip of snout just skimming the surface. Watch for babies and very young crocodilians in shallow grassy pools.

#4 Florida Manatee 

Manatee Fast Facts:
“Sea-cows” are Florida’s state marine mammal.

A distant cousin of the elephant, Florida’s manatee is an Indian manatee sub-species. They are huge, weighing up to 1500 pounds (680k), slow moving, gentle, playful, and seem to enjoy an easy-going combination of relaxed body surfing and rolling in their warm water habitat. 

Listed as Endangered in 1975, Florida manatees have recovered to between approximately 8350 and 11,730 individuals (based on a 2021-22 assessment) and were federally downlisted to Threatened in 2017 due to conservation successes. 

Climate Change and Manatees

They prefer water temperatures above 68-degrees F (20C). Fluctuating temperatures caused by climate change or other circumstances threaten their survival, (830 deaths caused by cold in 2013), as does the continued habitat loss, and threats from chemical and other pollutants.

The Food Chain: Warming waters are equally threatening. Warming Florida coastal waters impacts the plants necessary for manatee food, causing dieback or slow growth.

Toxins are another threat, and as water temperatures change, they may spread more quickly into regions that had been free of them in the past. Additionally, the warmer waters may cause manatee populations to migrate into less healthy waters.

Toxin Caused Starvation: In 2022, 800 manatees died of starvation and malnutrition, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. That comes after a record breaking 1100 manatees died in 2021 caused by seagrass loss caused by decades of toxic polluting in the 156-mile Indian River Lagoon, long considered one of North America’s most biodiverse.

Bacteria and Parasites: Warmer waters increase the chances of bacterial and parasite infection, which can quickly spread among the population, especially during mating season when manatees are more apt to gather into larger groups. 

And, of course, the entire food chain is affected as the water temperature changes. Predators move closer to the shore - and into manatee habitat - causing another threat.

Your Boat Can Kill A Manatee

Watercraft collisions are also responsible for Florida manatee deaths every year with 104 killed in boating accidents in 2016. In 2022, 76 boat strikes were verified. Look at any individual's back and flippers and you will see scars from propeller accidents.

Spotting Hint:
Manatees constantly graze on under water sea grass but must come up to breathe. Watch the water for floating loose sea grass fronds. Manatees are sloppy eaters. Broken fronds on the water’s surface can mean manatees are feasting below. Stop your boat, turn OFF your motor. Wait quietly, when a manatee comes up for air it will probably take the opportunity to check you out as well. 

Want to help a manatee?
Slow your boat and secure your trash. Every year manatees are killed by boat collisions, ingesting plastic garbage and other trash in the water, and by becoming entangled by loose fishing line. And take a look at our guide for manatee watching best practices: How To Safely See Manatee in the Wild

Citizen Science opportunity:
Be a manatee field work intern with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and help identify manatees. 

# 3 Roseate Spoonbill

Slightly bizarre behavior and beautiful coloring of the Roseate Spoonbill make these tall, pink and rose birds with their odd flat, spatula-shaped yellow beak, worth seeking out even if you are not particularly an avian enthusiast.

Best Place to See a Roseate Spoonbill
Along the mangrove swamps of the 10,000 Islands. They walk on long legs through shallow waters, their super sensitive bills submerged, making dizzy, sweeping motions with their heads, "feeling" for shrimp, crabs and other delicacies. 

Look up too. The Roseate spoonbill roosts in trees. These are fairly skittish birds, give them space. Go by boat or kayak, move slowly and be prepared to stop a fair distance away to watch the action. See below for more birds.

# 2 Black Bear

Black bear are the only wild bear species in Florida. 

They are fairly common the national parks and preserves in and around Everglades City.

Want to see a Florida black bear?
Bears rest in the Florida heat. Here they are most active early morning and evening. We took a driving “safari” one morning. Along the road we saw fresh bear scat. Early that evening we drove back to that spot and waited. Sure enough we able to watch a young bear from the car just lumbering down the road completely unconcerned about us. Finally, after about twenty minutes, something in the forest caught his eye (or his nose!) and he ambled into the trees and disappeared.

Black Bear fast Facts
Black bear range in color from black to cinnamon and in size from just 130 pounds (60kg) up to 700 pounds (318kg.) Females are smaller than males.

Florida black bears are 80% vegetarians, feasting on fruit, berries, and nuts. The rest of their diet is insects (15%) plus small mammals, fish, and carrion; however, bears are opportunists. If they can steal your food or garbage they will.

Be aware of black bears, they have no sense of humor when disturbed, and especially around the breeding time or with cubs they can be dangerous. 

Best Place to Look for Black Bear: 
Big Cypress National Preserve including the Fakahatchee Stand and the Florida Panther Wildlife Refuge 

Spotting Hint # 2:  We saw bear scat on the road in the early morning and came back to the same place at dusk. Bears are creatures of habit, sure enough, there he was less a half mile up the road and headed straight for us, which brings us to
Spotting Hint # 1: See something walking in the distance? Does it look like a large, perhaps slightly inebriated, human? Grab your binoculars, it might just be a bear! 

# 1 Of the Florida Wild Big Five:  
The Endangered Florida Panther

Florida Panther Fast Facts:

This is the last  place on Earth where Florida’s charismatic Big Five Big Cat can be found. The Florida panther is one of the world's most endangered species. According to the Florida Wildlife Federation, there are fewer than 200 reproducing adult Florida panthers left in the wild. 

This amber-eyed, tawny-colored feline once ranged throughout the southeastern United States. Today, most Florida panthers are found right here in Collier County in the western-most area of Florida’s Everglades.

The Florida Panther is elusive, but many folks taking guided walking tours see fresh tracks suggesting it is probably a better “spotter” than we humans. Try your luck. Florida panthers can and have been seen right here in Collier County.

Careless Drivers Kill Panthers
Unfortunately for the Florida panther, many encounters with humans result in the cat not living past the occasion. There were a record  32 vehicle-related panther deaths in 2015, in 2019 the toll was lower - but so was the total population. By 2022, the number of road kill deaths reached 21 and researchers felt a kind of relief. More roadkill probably means more panthers, is their thought. Somehow that is small consolation for careless driving.

No matter how protected they are, without help from the driving public, residents, tourists, and those just passing through, the Florida panther may soon be gone forever.

Staying vigilant and respecting 45MPH night time speed limits posted in panther areas are important ways you can really make a difference when driving through the western Everglades. 

“These (road kill) figures sound the death knell for a sustainable Florida panther population in the wild,” said Jeff Ruch, executive director of PEER (Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility) “Without sufficient protected habitat, there is no viable recovery for this alpha predator.”
 
Florida panthers purr - but make no mistake, this mountain lion subspecies is no lap kitty! 

They can reach 7 feet (2.1m) long and weigh in at up to 150 pounds (68k). Males are significantly larger than females. Look for the distinctive black markings on its long tail and ears. These are the only tawny brown cats with a tail 2/3 the length of such a large body that you will spot in the area. They prefer a diet of white tailed deer and wild pigs, and, if they are not poached, hit by moving vehicles, or succumb to feline disease, Florida panthers can survive up to 12 years in the wild.

Citizen Science opportunity: 
Read more about how your visit can help the Florida panther. 
See how to share your sighting with the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Best Place to Look for Florida Panthers: 
Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve.

There is More to Western Everglades Wildlife Than the Big Five!

The Everglades offers great wildlife spotting opportunities on land, in the sea, and in the air.

The Best Place to Look for Land Mammals

Take a car safari or a hike with a naturalist through Big Cypress National Preserve or Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, or Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, better yet - all three!  ( Follow the links for COVID-19 updates )

Along with Florida panther and black bear, look for bobcat, white tailed deer, river otter, gray fox, endangered Everglades mink, and marsh rabbit, raccoon, opossum, nine-banded armadillo, as well as squirrels, and various small mice, voles, and others.

Best Place to Look for Bottlenose Dolphins

The 10,000 Islands National Wildlife Refuge. Take a motor boat out, when they are out there, they will find you - and they will use the wake of your boat as their own playground. 

Best Place to Look for Sea Turtles

Florida hosts the nests of five of the world's seven remaining sea turtle species, three nest here in western Everglades.

The 10,000 Islands mangrove forest is an important nursery for many species of bird, mammal, fish, and the sea turtles that lay their eggs on the island beaches. The most endangered and the smallest sea turtle species in the world, the Kemps Ridley’s sea turtles, as well as green and loggerhead sea turtles nest in the Rookery Bay.  

When you are island hopping, look for turtle tracks coming from the water’s edge up the sand. Step carefully! Sea turtles and their nests are protected. Do not disturb or block turtle movements.

Citizen Science Opportunity: There are numerous opportunities to help protect and monitor nesting sea turtles, The Conservancy of Southwest Florida https://www.conservancy.org/  is a good place to begin. 

Best Place to Look for Sharks, Rays, Sawfish & the Amazing Horseshoe Crab

Bull sharks are the only true shark species known to be able to acclimate from marine to fresh water. Baby bull sharks like the shallows around the 10,000 Islands but give the babies space. Even young bull sharks are notoriously bad tempered. You may also see rays or sawfish, a very unusual type of ray.

The horseshoe crab is another ancient throw-back, find them in the shallows too. They look like little submerged tanks. 

The Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Sharks use these estuaries around the 10,000 Islands as a nursery. Visit the Environmental Learning Center where young children are very welcome, too. 

Frogs & Snakes & Turtles? Just Keep Your Eyes Open. 

Frog Species: 
These include true and tree frogs and toads. Look for pig frog, Southern leopard frog, oak toad, Florida cricket frog, barking frog, and many others. The mangrove forests and grassland marshes are great frog habitats.  

Snakes:
Over 26 species including the Everglades racer, Eastern indigo, Florida and Eastern kingsnakes, and cottonmouth (water moccasin), Eastern diamondback, and Eastern coral snake. Burmese pythons are a problematic, invasive species.

Turtle (non-sea) species:  include Florida snapping, striped mud, Florida red-bellied, chicken, and box turtles, and the gopher and Florida softshell turtle.

Bird Watching Around Everglades City:  350+ species

The Everglades hosts a never-ending parade of brilliant feathers. Even non-birdwatchers enjoy the flying rainbow. There are waders, warblers, raptors, scavengers, colorful birds of the land and sea and forest. Get a book or App and start a check list!

Look in the marshes for great egret standing like gentle question marks emerging from the wetland grass.

Great blue herons, a meter tall, search the marsh edge for fish and baby alligators, while mid-sized snowy egret, green heron and night heron, rounder and with shorter legs compete for minnows and lizards with lanky tri-colored heron, and limpkin.

Flocks of white Ibis wade the shallows, lifting off en-masse, easily identifiable by their curved beaks and black tips on their pure white wings. Wood stork, North America's only breeding stork, also has black details on a white body. 

You may see sandhill crane, little blue heron, glossy ibis, and yellow crowned and black crowned night heron, too.

Colorful geese and ducks such as snow geese and wood ducks and red heads float along teasing the alligators. And don’t forget the magnificent frigate bird. That is really their name and they live up to their publicity.

Raptors including great horned owls, barred owls,  and red shouldered hawks show themselves against tall pine trees and on power lines watching for rodents.

There is a huge osprey nest right in a parking lot as you enter Everglades City. The chicks were fledged by the time we arrived but one kept coming back, sitting next to the now-empty nest, hoping we thought, for one last gift from his parents. It is difficult not to be captivated by the birds. Look for shrikes and falcons and both turkey and black vultures, and many others who ride the thermals high above.  

And then there are smaller flying jewels. Over 35 different warblers make their way through this area, at least four staying to breed: prothonotary, yellow throat, prairie, and pine warblers. Bright red tanagers and Eastern blue birds flit through the scrub forest and look for woodpeckers and others too numerous to list.

Best place to see the birds:
Everywhere. Each park or sanctuary has their own “flocks” but we saw myriads of different herons, ibis, shore birds, song birds, and raptors right in the yards and trees of Everglades City.  Water birds (as well as alligators) take on a new perspective from the water.

Responsible Wildlife Viewing Practices:

Responsible wildlife viewing is about keeping both you and the wildlife safe. Never Harass Wildlife. Wild animals including bear, wild cats, alligators, and others are well equipped to deal with threats. When you come too close (yes, even just for a selfie), you become the threat.And never, never feed wildlife. 

Putting yourself in danger you also endangers the animal. Wild animals that attack a human will likely be killed for human safety, even if the fault was yours. Sometimes just disturbing them can hurt their chance of survival, sea turtles and many nesting birds are good examples of this.

Take a guided walking tour with a trained naturalist for the best wildlife viewing experience. Or enjoy a driving safari, dawn and dusk are the best times. Kayaking is another way to experience the wildlife, especially with a guide that can show you their secret places – and also find the way out again. Just remember – NO swimming in alligator country. Keep quiet and still and be amazed at how many species come to view you.

For more responsible best practices from the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission read : Bear FAQS,  Living with Panthers ,  Living with Alligators & Crocodiles,  Learn About Sea Turtle, Practice Turtle Safety 101

Special Thanks To

Tod Dahlke and Tour the Glades        Follow on Facebook for hosting Destination:Wildlife on a very responsible wildlife tour of the Western Everglades wild spaces. 

Big Cypress National Preserve & Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge and The Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges Complex and the National Park Service for their help, information, images and guidance.  

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