Four Animals in South Florida to Preserve through Environmentalism

Environmentalism is a very hot topic these days. You need to think about all of the ways that your carbon footprint and waste hurts the enviornment.

Poor environmental practices have many devastating impacts on the world around us. One of the most obvious is climate change. We talk a lot about how rising sea levels can flood many coastal communities and cause the possible extinction of many types of wildlife.

We don’t usually think about the types of animals that are most likely to suffer from the environmental mistakes that we make. There are a lot of posts online about polar bears changing their diets to avoid dying to the shrinking ice caps. However, animals in warmer places like Florida can suffer as well.

South Florida Animals that Need to Be Protected Through Sound Environmental Policies

There are a lot of South Florida animals that could suffer from bad environmental practices. You need to think more about them if you want to be motivated to do right by the planet.

Florida is widely regarded as one finest spots for wildlife watchers in the United States. From top to bottom the Sunshine State is bursting with a vast variety of birds, beasts, and marine and freshwater life. From the crystal-clear waters of the North Florida natural springs to the wetlands of the Everglades, via forests and grasslands, Florida is a haven for nature lovers.

South Florida is particularly rich in exciting animals, with some of the most exotic native animals and unique species found towards the bottom end of the state. So if you are taking a couples cruise from Fort Lauderdale and have a hankering for some wildlife, here are four animals you should be keeping an eye out for!

American Crocodile

The southern tip of Florida is the only place in the world where you will find American crocodiles. Far less aggressive than crocs in Africa or Australia, they are also much rarer. Unlike their close cousins and Florida neighbors the alligator, American crocs hang out in salty or brackish waters, which means you will find them across the swamps and marshes of the Everglades as well as on some of the Upper Keys.

West Indian Manatee

Manatees are one of the cutest and most loveable of all underwater creatures, giant, gentle, and ever-so-friendly. Swimming with manatees is a wonderful experience and a quintessentially Floridian thing to do! West Indian Manatees love warmer waters, so tend to be found off the coast of Southern Florida and the Keys, although they can also be found in the warm waters of North Florida’s natural springs as well as around Tampa Bay.

Key Deer

These tiny creatures barely top two and a half feet and weigh a minuscule 90 pounds, which perhaps explains why they are quite rare and found only in South Florida. They are clustered mostly in the hardwood hammocks of Big Pine Key and are most commonly seen at the beginning or end of the day in the half-light of dawn or dusk.

Roseate Spoonbill

These gorgeous, bizarre-looking creatures look like they have stepped straight off the page of a child’s coloring book, splashed with pink, fuchsia, and red, with a long, flat bill. They are one of the weirdest and most wonderful-looking of all the animals in Florida and absolutely cannot be mistaken for anything else!

These Florida Animals Need to Be Protected With Better Environmental Practices

It is important to practice better environmental practices in order to protect these animals in South Florida. You will be more likely to abide by the right eco-friendly practices if you are aware of them.