The Everglades is known for a lot of things like alligators and airboats. It’s also known for its mangrove forests. They’re out-of-this-world enchanting. The state of Florida has around 469,000 acres of mangrove forests.

There are about 50 species of mangroves. Three mangroves species can be found in Florida. The Everglades is home to largest mangrove forest in North America. Mangroves grow and thrive in tropical and subtropical climates. These trees produce seeds that drop and get carried away by water or winds, and the seeds can pretty much grow wherever they land.

Florida is home to three species of mangroves: the red mangrove, the black mangrove, and the white mangrove.

The most well-known, and easily seen in the Everglades, is the red mangrove. It’s a salt-tolerant tree that grows in areas with low-oxygen soil. They can take freshwater from the saltwater to survive. These mangroves have prop roots that make them look like they’re standing on the water. With these roots, the forests can handle rising tides in-and-out of the Everglades. The roots are reddish in color.

The black mangrove sits at a higher elevation than the red mangrove. This mangrove has finger-like projections that protrude from the soil around the trunk of the tree.

The white mangrove can be found at the highest elevations of these three species. This mangrove’s roots do not show; it has light, yellow-green leaves.

The Florida coastline and the Everglades benefit from mangroves. They stabilize the coastline and higher lands by reducing erosion with their roots. The mangroves block winds, waves, floods, tides, and storm surges from damaging the land. The bigger, wider, and thicker a mangrove forest, the more protection to the environment it can provide. These mangroves can also filter water and keep water quality high.

The mangroves also provide a habitat for a variety of birds and marine life. Many fish and animals use the forests as protection, shelter, or a place to find food.

According to American Forests, the oldest national conservation organization in the country, almost half of the world’s old-growth mangrove forest have disappeared in the past 50 years. Humans are a major cause to the loss of the mangrove forests due to industrial shrimp farming and coastal development.

In Florida, state and city laws have been established to protect these forests, which are a key role in Florida’s ecosystem.

Ride Through the Mangroves

Do you want to see these mangroves up close? There’s plenty of them to see in the Everglades! They are breathtaking!

An airboat ride can give you a look at these forests, as well as lots of other plants and animals. Book an airboat tour by calling 800-368-0065  or visiting our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

Whether we’re on vacation, a trip, or just going out for a walk, safety should always be a priority. When entering the Everglades, you are entering a beautiful National Park filled with wildlife and plant life. Being outdoors, you risk dealing with inclement weather, bugs, and other unpredictable things.

If you’re planning to visit the Everglades, it’s best to familiarize yourself with some of the park’s safety precautions and rules, so you can get the most out of your visit. Whether you’re taking an airboat tour, walking a trail, or going camping, you should keep safety in mind while spending time in this Park.

Below, we’ve shared some of the Everglades National Park’s safety precautions, tips, and rules that you need to keep in mind when visiting.

1. Pay attention to the weather. It can get very hot and humid in the Everglades, especially during the summer months. Prepare appropriately for the weather. Wear sunscreen, bring water, and wear proper clothing.
2. Children should always be supervised. The trails are surrounded by wilderness, so there are animals roaming freely all in the grasses and vegetation. For everyone’s safety, make sure children stick to the trail with you.
3. Pets are not allowed on the trails.
4. Do not feed wildlife. It is illegal. Over time, animals will become aggressive if they’re being fed by humans in their wild habitat. The animals know how to find their own food.
5. Be aware of vultures. Vultures live in the area and are federally protected. They can be mean, and have been known to damage the windshields, sun roofs, and windshield wipers of cars and other vehicles. If you see a a group of vultures, avoid parking near it. Park in full sun, put a car cover over the car, cover any exposed runner with a towel or wet sheet, use loud noises to spook the vultures off the car or vehicle, and notify a ranger if a vulture is on your car and it won’t leave.
6. Don’t bother, touch, or interact with any wildlife. If you harm, touch, or get in the way of the animals or birds, you can get in big trouble; it is illegal to bother the animals in any way. The ecosystem is fragile, and we don’t want to disrupt animals in their homes.
7. Do not leave a fire unattended. You can build a fire in a designated area.
8. Do not tie anything or attach anything to trees or plants.
9. Do not leave garbage out or behind. Don’t litter.
10. Apply insect repellant before walking on any of the trails; the park also sells repellant at all stores in the Park. It’s best to stick to walking on paved areas if you want to stay away from bugs as much as possible.
11. Always tell someone where you’re going if you plan to walk alone in an area.
12. Do not pick flowers or plants to bring home.

It’s important that you keep these safety tips in mind so you can have an enjoyable care-free trip to the National Park. An airboat tour is a safe way to explore the Everglades. Captain Mitch’s Airboat Tours has many years of experience navigating through the wetland. Book an airboat tour by calling 800-368-0065  or visiting our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

The Everglades is more than just a Park; it is filled with endless activities and programs for visitors to partake in to learn more, experience more, and help more. Also, there are programs in the Park that are led by researchers, scientists, and experts to find out more about the Park, help the Park thrive, and solve problems within the Park.

For this article, we wanted to share with you a few inventory and monitoring programs in the Park:

Aquatics Program – The South Florida Natural Resources Center monitors freshwater fish and invertebrates in the Park. The Shark River Slough is sampled once a year and the Rocky Glades area is sampled monthly. This program tracks seasonal and long-term changes in freshwater fish and invertebrate populations due to weather and water changes.

Wildlife Monitoring Program – This program has gathered critical information to the management of wading birds, eagles, ospreys, sea turtles, alligators, crocodiles, white-tailed deer, Florida panthers, and the Cape Sable seaside sparrow. This program monitors the population of many endangered species.

Hydrolic Monitoring Program – The park protects a large portion of freshwater marsh in the Everglades. In 2000, the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) was started and it was created to improve the future quality of the natural and human systems in south Florida including restoring, preserving and protecting the south Florida ecosystem. The restoration of these systems will be considered a success once the ecosystem begins to act like a wild system than as a set of managed and disconnected wetlands. Park hydrologists monitors freshwater, brackish water, and saltwater conditions through monitoring sites and stations. They also monitor and evaluate biological, chemical, and environmental factors affecting water quality. Hydrologists began monitoring precipitation in the park n 1949 and started to install stations to monitor water in 1952.

Come on down and visit this beautiful Park. Maybe once you’re down here, you’ll want to volunteer and help the Park become restored once again!

Looking for a fun way to experience the Everglades? Book a trip for a once-in-a-lifetime experience on an airboat, by calling 800-368-0065  or visiting our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).

The Florida Black Bear calls the Everglades its home. It lives all over Florida and is the state’s largest land mammal. They can weigh anywhere from 125 to 400 pounds.

The Everglades is a great environment for these black bears, because there aren’t too many humans around. These bears love a reclusive life. This park gives the bears to live in a place freely.

Florida black bears are unique because they adapted to thrive in a subtropical habitat, something no other black bear subspecies has accomplished. In South Florida, they live in habitats like sand-pine scrub, hardwood forests, pine rocklands, forested sloughs and oak scrub.

The Everglades is a perfect home for this bear, because it’s full of plant life, which accounts for nearly 80 percent of a black bear’s diet. These bears like to munch on the sabal palmetto, a native tree in the Everglades.

Even with protected wildernesses like the Everglades, Ocala National Forest and Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida black bears experience habitat reduction. Because of humans, Florida black bears lose 20 acres of habitat an hour due to roads, buildings, and homes. Humans also accidently kill black bears on the road, which is currently the primary cause of death of a black bear in Florida. Black bears are active at night and often cross roads, which is why they get hit.

Florida has never seen a predatory black bear attack on humans, but people have been hurt by black bears before, especially if the bear feels like it needs to defend itself or its cubs.

If you encounter a black bear in the Everglades, back away slowly, and never turn your back to a bear. Hold your hands up. Do not make eye contact with the bear. Do not run. Do not climb a tree. Make noise. Blow a whistle or bang things together to scare the bear. Speak calmly to the bear as it will recognize your calm tone. Do not feed a black bear.

Seeing a bear is pretty cool, but it’s cooler (and safer) when you’re not up-close-and-personal like on an airboat. An airboat ride can give you a glimpse of many animals, birds, and plants in the Park. Book an airboat tour by calling 800-368-0065  or visiting our Everglades Airboat Tours page. We are open seven days a week 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If paying by cash, adults cost $40 (plus tax) and children 12 and under cost $20 (plus tax. If paying by credit card, adults cost $45 (plus tax) and children cost $25 (plus tax).