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Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides

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water striders

Identifying Florida Species

Use our photos and descriptions to help you identify Florida birds, plants, trees, wildlife, and more

When we hike, bike, paddle, and backpack in Florida, we take a lot of photos of what we see. Doing so helps us check them against field guides to describe what we see along trails in Florida.

We identify the trees we walk under, the wildflowers we walk past, and the birds that stay still long enough for us to get a good picture. Those descriptions go into our guidebooks and into the write-ups on the trails and parks we visit.

anhinga drying wings
An anhinga drying its wings at Green Cay Wetlands in Boynton Beach

In this part of our website, we share those identifications with you. Think of these as a series of quick visual guides to Florida’s species.

These are not comprehensive, but they should help you with many things you commonly see. We’re adding to them on a regular basis.

Pygmy rattlesnake juvenile
Juvenile pygmy rattlesnakes have beautiful coloration

Contents

  • 1 Guides to Florida Species
    • 1.1 Florida Plants and Trees
    • 1.2 Identifying Birds in Florida
    • 1.3 Florida Wildflowers
    • 1.4 Florida Wildlife
    • 1.5 Insects in Florida
    • 1.6 Florida Habitats

Guides to Florida Species

Each of these guides provides visual information to help you identify commonly-found species in that category.

Live oak GTM Reserve

Florida Plants and Trees

Florida’s botanical bounty means a million shades of green. Here are photos and descriptions to help you identify plants, shrubs, grasses, mosses, and trees in Florida.

Many species of birds browsing mud flats

Identifying Birds in Florida

Identification of common and unusual bird species seen in Florida

swamp mallow

Florida Wildflowers

Florida’s wildflowers give a compelling reason to get outdoors. Use these resources to identify what you see.

alligator sunning

Florida Wildlife

From toothsome alligators to scampering lizards, you will see wildlife while enjoying Florida’s outdoors. Here are photos and descriptions of some of the creatures you may encounter along our trails.

Black widow spider (© ondreicka - stock.adobe.com)

Insects in Florida

In Florida, insects thrive. Here are photos and descriptions to help you identify insects and spiders in Florida.

Broken Arrow Bluff

Florida Habitats

A haven of biodiversity, Florida has ever-changing landscapes along its trails

Primary Sidebar

Identify Florida Species

  • Birds in Florida
  • Insects in Florida
  • Plants and Trees in Florida
  • Wildflowers in Florida
  • Wildlife in Florida
  • Florida’s Habitats

Our Newest Books

The Florida Trail Guide
Florida Trail Hikes 2nd edition cover
50 Hikes in Central Florida
Explorers Guide North Florida Panhandle
Book cover showing orange blaze and trail leading into stand of cabbage palms
Book cover of trail down swamp causeway under ancient pines
Five Star Trails Gainesville & Ocala
Five Star Trails Orlando

Florida Trail Apps

Farout GuidesFarout Guides Comprehensive logistics and offline maps for the
Florida National Scenic Trail (1,500 miles), the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail (108 miles), and the ECT Florida Connector (92 miles).

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