Saturday, April 20, 2024

The Everglades and Big Cypress

 While Susie and her family were here, we went for tours of Everglades National Park and the adjoining Big Cypress National Preserve.

Mangroves are usually found near the coast, but they have been driven further inland by hurricanes.

Historically, the Everglades are fields of grass.


Palm trees can't survive in the water, so they die and become the homes of insects, animals and birds.



Alligators prefer fresh water, but they will also live in the inland brackish water closest to the fresh water sources.


Strangler figs climb up cypress trees.

A red-shouldered hawk kept an eye on the tourists.

2 comments:

Stefan Jansson said...

A nice family walk.

Taken For Granted said...

The Everglades is a fascinating place to walk so long as one is conscious of the the Gators. Last time we were there we were lucky to see both Alligators and one Crocodile who was out of his normal environment. You have a great photo of that Red Shouldered hawk.