“Pine flatwoods, marshlands, wet prairies, and one of the largest old-growth bald cypress forests on this continent.” That’s Ann Martin at Matador Network describing how the 2¼-mile boardwalk in Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary “takes you through a variety of Florida ecosystems.” Meanwhile, she adds, “otters, alligators, and white-tailed deer also call Corkscrew home, as does the largest ghost orchid ever discovered.” And you can take a self-guided tour along the boardwalk that “exposes alligator holes, mammoth cypress trees and lakes where myriad bird species come to play,” explains ABC News.
The sanctuary has a fascinating history. It was formed “in response to the plume hunting industry that nearly wiped out various species of wading birds like the great and snowy egret and a logging industry that was decimating the cypress habitat near Naples,” notes Les Winkeler at the Decatur Herald & Review. In addition to hundreds of species of birds, he adds, “there are opportunities to view alligators, black bears and even the Florida panther. And, that doesn’t take into account the hundreds of plant species.”