Everglades National Park - Shark Valley

01/23/14 - 02/15/14

Shark Valley is the northern entrance to Everglades National Park. It has a 15 mile loop road open only to hikers, bikers, and the park's tram. As it leaves the visitor center, the road parallels a slough where many birds and alligators hang out. They are all habituated to people, so they go about their daily routines without paying much attention to the people around them.

I made a couple of visits to this area. While here, I spent a lot of time watching the various birds feed. It is interesting to watch their various techniques. Some of them wade in shallow water and others sit on a low hanging branch looking for minnows. I really enjoyed watching the Tri-colored Herons and Snowy Egrets. They stand on the edge of the water and when they see a minnow, they fly out and grab the minnow while in the air. I also enjoyed watching a Great Blue Heron. It perched on a bush about 6 feet above the water. When it saw a fish within striking distance, it would dive into the water. I got some photos of it in some interesting poses as it dove into the water.

Another interesting event happened while I was here. Another Tiger parked next to mine in the parking lot. Tigers are not very common. In my over 6 1/2 years on the road, this was only the 10th Tiger I've ever seen. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to meet the other owner.

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Steve Winker