Sanibel Beach Florida &More than Shells and Sand....
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World Wide Web
Publication Date: January 19, 2007
Sanibel Beach Florida & More than Shells and
Sand.....
While
most vacationers are drawn to Sanibel Beach
Florida for it s famous shelling
opportunities, there s plenty more to see and do once you tear yourself away
from the beach.
Start
with the J.N . Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge, one of the premier refuges in the
US Fish and Wildlife Service s System. World famous for its winter migrating
bird population, the Refuge welcomes visitors with an exciting Visitor s Center.
Here, you will find interactive exhibits that entertain and inform, a gallery of
refuge photography, a short video explaining the origin of the Refuge and its
importance in the area ecosystem and much more.
A 2.6
mile road winds through its acres of mangrove forests, and brackish impoundments
where herons, egrets, ibises, sandpipers and many other birds feed and roost.
The Refuge is home to more than 220 different species of birds. Drive your car,
take the naturalist-operated tram, or bike through, making as many stops as you
wish to enjoy the surprises this sanctuary offers.
And
there s more conservation land to be enjoyed. Inland, in the central part of the
Sanibel
Beach
Florida, the Bailey Tract provides
another birding opportunity. Here the water is all fresh, bordered by the
Sanibel
River on two sides and dotted with a
series of small ponds. Armed with binoculars, you ll spy ospery on their nests,
red shouldered hawks, and sometimes an alligator or two, in addition to ducks
and songbirds. You ll walk through sawgrass meadows as tall as your shoulder and
get a feel for what the Everglades are
like.
Conservation is high on the list of Sanibel
Beach Florida residents concerns.
In fact, more than 50 per cent of the Island is
conservation and sanctuary land, unavailable for development.
The
Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation owns significant tracts of land.
Lot by lot, acre by acre, SCCF has raised funds,
purchased and restored significant. Their headquarters off the
San-Cap Road is the starting
point for a range of interesting walking trails. You ll also find gift shop and
native plant nursery.
Further along the road
the Clinic for Rehabilitation of Wildlife, (CROW) offers a look at an animal
hospital where walking and flying creatures are brought to be healed and
returned to the wild. Recognized as one of the nation s leading rescue clinics,
CROW has treated more the 45,000 patients since opening in 1968. Staffed by two
full time veterinarians and a veterinary assistant, CROW offers a daily
presentation at the headquarters on its rehabilitation and care
procedures.
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