Florida Wildlife

An alligator, Alligator mississippiensis, watching from the grass. 

While I was visiting Gainesville, Florida last week, I spent a day at Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park (click here to see the park's webpage). This remarkable wild spot is a National Natural Landmark yet is only a 15-minute drive from downtown Gainesville.

It's a little piece of old Florida. Well, not so little -- there are over 22,000 acres with trails, boardwalks, picnic spots, campgrounds, and more. It is crawling with wildlife. I saw turtles, dragonflies, caterpillars, wild pigs, wading birds, coots, rails, and alligators, lots of alligators.

There's one. 

A little one. 

Another one. 

A bunch of them! Click to enlarge and check out the one with its mouth open. 

A tricolored (used to be Louisiana) heron, Egretta tricolor. 

An American coot, Fullica americana. 

A cattle egret, Bubulcus ibis. 

A perched anhinga, Anhinga anhinga, and a flying snowy egret, Egretta thula. 

Click here to look at the website of the Friends of Paynes Prairie.