November 29 & 30, 2021
HOMOSASSA SPRINGS WILDLIFE SPRINGS STATE PARK
4150 S Suncoast Blvd, Homosassa, FL 34446
“Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park is located near Homosassa Springs, Florida, in the United States. The park is one of the best places in the state to view manatees. Visitors can get close to the animals on a floating observatory.” Wikipedia
I came to this area of Florida after a friend said it was an area she wanted to visit when she came to Florida. Her goal was to see manatees, which congregate in the natural springs during the cold months. Not knowing what I was expecting I stopped at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife Springs State Park Visitors Center to start my exploration. A very nice volunteer explained that to get to the park I could walk, drive, or ride the tram provided by the park. I boarded the tram and took a scenic drive to the entrance to the park. What I found inside was a wildlife preserve along side the Homosassa Spring.
The reserve had quite a collection of wildlife native to Florida, each animal had a unique story about why they lived in the reserve. Some notable residents were Lu, the oldest hippopotamus in the United States, a panther, a bobcat, a black bear, and several species of birds. Reading the stories of why the animals were there was sometimes heart-breaking, but I was thankful there are places like this reserve to care for animals that are no longer able to survive in the wild. When I went to the spring area I saw several species of fish, but no manatees until I found three in the reserve’s manatee research tank which was open to the spring. The manatees had come in to eat.
With the forecast of temperatures in the 30s for overnight, I decided to return to the park the next morning to see if more manatees would be in the spring, plus I wanted to try to photograph some of the other wildlife again. To my joy, there were several manatees in the springs. The park has an underwater observatory near the spring and there were several manatees swimming around that area. It was a very cool experience.
Lu, the oldest hippopotamus in captivity.
Black Vulture. There are several black vultures in the park, though they are not considered a park resident, as they are free to come and go.
Several of the birds are residents because they can no longer fly. For example, this Brown Pelican has only one wing.
Can you see the alligator?
Manatees in the reserve's research tank.
A manatee in the reserve's research tank.
The river leading out from the springs (or the river the manatees swim to come into the spring).
Looking out from the underwater observatory.
The Homosassa Spring and the Underwater Observation area.
Bobcat
Panther
Black Bear
A mother with its baby.
From the underwater observatory.
A tribute to the founder of the reserve.