Shark Valley

Shark Valley is another visitor center in the north part of the Everglades.  There is a walk along a canal that is full of birds and alligators. It’s also full of tourists taking pictures, people on rented bikes, and an occasional shuttle. We went in the morning around 10 am. We got a space in the parking lot but the path was already starting to get crowded. We drove past this area later in the day. The parking lot was full and there was maybe a mile of cars parked along the road.

This purple gallimule is the prettiest bird in the area. We tried to describe him to a ranger. I said that the colors were like a peacock and the ranger paused to think. John told him the bird’s beak looks like candy corn. The ranger immediately knew it was the purple gallimule.

These are an anhinga. The black is a male and the brown neck one is female. They look like a water snake as they swim in the water to catch fish. They dive down and then only their skinny neck will show above the water as they breathe. Then they have to stretch out their wings to dry before their next time in the water.

There are lots of alligators along the trail or in the canal. The picture shows one swimming by and one on the shore. Some of them get quite noisy in their roar (or whatever you call that sound).

Baby alligators…we counted five that were around two-feet long.

  

Got to mention the traffic on the two-lane Tamiami Trail (Route 41). It’s not that it’s exceptionally busy, but people keep pulling over to see the birds or alligators. And there are a lot of alligators along this road. I called out “Alligator” every time I saw one. After about 100 of them, John was very frustrated with me! But now, after being in the area for a few weeks, alligators and birds are interesting, but not enough to risk life and limb to pull over on a road with a 60 mph speed limit. Plus, there are several roadside stops with plenty of wildlife where you can safely pull over.