Wildlife
White ibis in flight.
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The area's outstanding wildlife habitats, including floodplain forest,
sawgrass marshes, and pine flatwoods, support significant populations
of both rare and common wildlife. The Apalachicola ecosystem supports
the highest diversity of amphibians and reptiles in North America, north
of Mexico, as well as the greatest number of freshwater fish species
(86) in Florida.
From the wildlife viewing tower at Sand Beach, you might see bald eagles,
osprey, waterfowl, wading birds, brown pelicans, red-shouldered hawks,
marsh hawks, red-bellied woodpeckers, pileated woodpeckers, rails, shore
birds, barred owls, swamp sparrows, and marsh wrens. If you walk along
the nature trail in the adjacent maritime hammock, you will find neo-tropical
birds during spring and fall migrations. You may also observe deer,
raccoons, and opossums along the nature trail. From the pier look for
fiddler crabs, blue crabs, alligators, and dolphins in the bay.
During spring and fall migrations, the boat ramp sites and their associated
wetland communities are good birding spots. More
on birding.
