Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary – Florida, USA

About

The Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is located 30 minutes east of Naples, Florida, in the heart of the Everglades. The Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary covers a 2.5-mile boardwalk loop adventure through pine flatwoods, wet prairies, around a marsh, and through the largest old growth Bald Cypress forest in North America.

There are 69 ecosystems recognized by the Florida Natural Areas Inventory, FNAI, across the state. These fall into 6 categories, interior uplands, wetlands, and waters; and coastal uplands, wetlands, and water. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary occupies roughly 13,000 acres but the boardwalk loop takes you through a sampling of some of these many habitats that are protected within the 13,000 acres. It is home to hundreds of alligators, otters, white-tailed deer, red-bellied turtles, raptors, wading birds, and a wide variety of songbirds. Beyond the boardwalk, these lands are protected, managed, and preserved. The sanctuary is known for its bird habitats and is home to endangered birds like the federally endangered Wood Stork.

The Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary mission is to protect the natural resources of Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary and the surrounding watershed for the benefit of the birds and wildlife of southwest Florida. Natural resource management is a priority at the sanctuary. Fire, invasive species, hydrology, wildlife & plants, and human access are the top 5 principal components that the natural resource management program focuses on. The public policy advocacy at Corkscrew Swamp is guided by Sound Science.
Owen visited the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in February of 2003 and has photographed the White Ibis, and other Long-Legged Waders.