On my recent trip to Gulfstream, FL I also went to Wakodahatchee Wetlands. Usually, this wouldn’t be the basis of a blog post for me…but, it was amazing, wonderful, and weird.
The wetlands are man-made and are not that large. You travel through them on a boardwalk. It is a really nice, easy walk.
Our first encounter was with a family of black-bellied whistling-ducks. We watched them for quite some time as they made their way into the water and back up the stream bank. I even tried my hand at a few artistic photos! You can click on any of these photos to see them in more detail.
One of the friends we were on vacation with is from California and was terrified that alligators were everywhere. She kept asking if alligators might be in *that* or *that* or *that* body of water we passed. I told her it was a possibility in every bit of fresh water she pointed out. So, it was sort of humorous that we actually saw an alligator at the wetlands and could bring a picture for her to see (which she wasn’t interested in seeing!). It was about 20 yards away, below the boardwalk. Plenty close for me!
Then, as we neared the end of the trail I stopped dead in my tracks. There was a huge prehistoric looking dragon/iguana/lizard *THING* just off the trail about 30 feet. This time we were *not* on a boardwalk. The animal could easily have charged us. Instead, “he” just sat there, all 4 feet of him! He moved slowly; thankfully, as any faster might have caused my sister and I to go running for the car.
This is the most interesting animal I have ever seen in the wild. It seemed so out of place that I assumed that it was an exotic pet that had been released or was feral. Turns out, I was probably right. He is a green iguana, and native to South America.
Just when my sister and I left the iguana, we turned a corner and found several blue herons.
Not to be outdone…there were also some very interesting plants!
Quite an eventful trip for such a small wetlands! Hope you enjoy all the pictures.
