Behold Florida's Beauty on an Everglades Eco tour
The Everglades is a mystery to people who may visit Florida, or have only just heard of it. It’s an ecosystem that is home to some of the most unique animal and plant life in the world. On an Everglades eco tour at Mack’s Fish Camp, you get to explore another world that’s hiding in plain sight.
Everglades Ecotourism
So, what is ecotourism? Ecotourism combines the adventure of exploring the beauty of nature with a raised awareness of it. Destinations like the Everglades, with its untouched ecosystem and high biodiversity, offer an experience that’s both fun and educational. Nature enthusiasts and adventurous families alike can expect a great time while learning its secrets. The Everglades has areas so remote that they can only be reached by an airboat, and have remained largely unchanged for centuries.
The Fragile Beauty of Florida’s Wetlands
As children we may learn that wetlands are the playground of ducks and frogs, not yet able to see their importance. Wetlands habitats are of vital importance to all life that thrives near it, and the Florida Everglades is no different. Many endangered animal species call it home, and it also provides drinking water to millions of South Florida residents.
Even though it’s an ecosystem fed by floods and shaped by fires year after year, the Everglades are remarkably fragile. In recent years, its protection and its restoration have grown as important issues to Floridians.
Unforgettable Adventure on an Everglades Eco Tour
Offering the chance to see and hear exotic bird species and observe the quiet power of wading alligators up close under an endless sky, the Florida Everglades is a feast for the senses. It is truly the defining natural attraction of Florida, as well as the legacy of the Gladesmen Culture here at Mack’s Fish Camp. If you’d like to take an Everglades eco tour with us or just want to experience an airboat ride in Miami, come on by.
Everglades Habitats: The Sawgrass Marsh
Large areas of the Florida Everglades are covered by freshwater marshes. These flooded habitats have different categories, but the most common one is the sawgrass marsh. What is the importance of this habitat, and what is this abundant plant it’s named for?
What is Sawgrass?
Sawgrass is a slim, tall plant that can grow to over 9 feet high! It’s commonly found in wetlands and along riverbanks in the southern United States. The sawgrass marsh is the habitat that inspired the Everglades’ nickname and title of Marjory Stoneman Douglas’ famous book, “Everglades: River of Grass”.
Despite its name, this Everglades plant is actually a species of sedge, not a grass. But sawgrass is also named for the fine, sharp points that run along its edges. These teeth can cut a person on contact. At Mack’s Fish Camp, we make sure that no one makes contact with it while on an airboat tour.
Sawgrass and Everglades Ecology
Sawgrass may not be so kind to human touch, but it’s very good to the environment of the Florida Everglades. In the winter months, migratory bird species eat the seeds produced by the sawgrass. Other bird species and even alligators use this tall, sharp sedge as protection by nesting in the sawgrass marsh.
The sawgrass marsh is flooded for much of the year, which can help produce taller and thicker sawgrass. If its growth becomes too thick and dense, it can further slow the sheetflow of the Everglades. During the Everglades dry season, sawgrass can help fuel wildfires. The wet soil which roots the plant allows it to recover while also removing any invading plants or trees from the marsh.
Like much of the flora and fauna found in the Everglades, sawgrass is strong enough to thrive here and help the ecosystem at the same time. Although it’s best to avoid touching it, you can see the River of Grass up close on an Everglades airboat tour at Mack’s Fish Camp.
Islands on The River of Grass: Everglades Tree Islands
There is a common misconception that the Florida Everglades is just a giant, grassy swamp. It’s actually made of several different habitats, each full of distinct flora, including trees. When you visit the Everglades, you’ll notice many clusters of trees standing tall against the wet prairie and sawgrass marsh. These small hammocks are known as Everglades tree islands.
What Are Tree Islands?
Tree islands are small forests that sit on land just dry enough for them to take root. But, there’s more to it than that. Everglades tree islands are formed on land that is elevated just slightly, in some cases only by inches!
They can be made of tropical hardwood trees, ferns, cypress, and other topical plant species. Before the Everglades were drained in the 1920’s, the freshwater sheetflow went around the tree islands. As a result, many of them have an elongated, teardrop shape, with the rounded end pointed toward the water flow.
A Shelter for Everglades Wildlife
Being the only spots of dry earth outside of the pine rocklands and hardwood hammocks, tree islands can act as a dry oasis for Everglades wildlife. Reptiles, birds, and mammals that feed in the wet prairie use them for shelter to rest or hide from predators.
Many birds, including the Everglades snail kite, nest on these islands. White tailed deer also frequent them, because if they spend too much time in water they can develop hoof rot, which can be fatal.
Where Did They Come From?
The ground that Everglades tree islands rest on was long-believed to be bedrock that slowly rose over time. It was recently revealed by a team of scientists that these spots were middens, garbage piles from centuries-old human settlements. The researchers found bones, shell tools, and charcoal, which would’ve helped create an elevated dry area where plants could grow.
The phosphates from the bones acted as fertilizer, and the roots reached further into the bedrock for water. This setup helped tree islands to not only form, but continue to thrive now!
Everglades tree islands don’t just add an air of mystery to this ecosystem. They enhance its unique beauty as well as its elevation, and also provide homes to countless animals. Taking a private airboat tour at Mack’s Fish Camp can give you the chance to see them up close!
Ready To Take an Airboat Ride in Miami?
You’re about to head to South Florida, packed and ready to enjoy some time relaxing near one of its many beautiful beaches. But, if you’re craving some time away from the artificial reefs of city hotels, and some excitement for the whole family, why not book an Everglades airboat tour?
A unique, and memorable experience for everyone, airboating in Miami is also a fun and educational way to see the Florida Everglades. If you’re wondering as to what an airboat is or what the benefits of riding one might be, here’s a quick overview to get you started.
Airboats, Transportation Standard of The Everglades
Airboats, also known as fanboats or blowboats, are flat-bottomed boats powered by aircraft engines fitted with caged propellers on the back of the vessel. By having these large propellers spinning above the water, airboats are able to cross the mostly shallow waters of the Florida Everglades quickly, while getting access to its more remote areas better than boats with standard engines. Along with their elevated seating, airboats provide a unique and exciting way for passengers to see out and over plants and grass and observe the wide variety of wildlife that inhabits the Everglades.
Get up Close with South Florida Wildlife
Florida is recognized as having a lot of three things: oranges, beaches, and the American alligator. They like to make their homes here in the Everglades, so airboating in Miami is the best way to see them and the many other animal species that reside here too. The Everglades is an environment with incredible biodiversity, with wading birds like the Roseatte Spoonbill and Great Blue Huron, turtles, and more calling it home. Once endangered in the 1980’s, the alligators have bounced back so well that you’re likely to lose count of how many you see while on an Everglades airboat tour.
Miami Airboat Tours - Experience the Florida Everglades
The Everglades truly is a gem of South Florida, one that no other state has. Outdoor sportsmen, nature enthusiasts and thrill-seeking families alike come from around the world to explore this area, many opting to tour it on a guided airboat ride to best experience it. At Macks’s Fish Camp, you and your family get to behold the vast, natural beauty of the Everglades, guided by the fifth-generation Florida Gladesmen who call it home, at an exciting pace. The chance to see the wide variety of local wildlife and a private airboat tour is just the activity to make for a complete family vacation to South Florida.
The Florida Everglades: An Escape From City Living
During your daily commute, you might spy a glance at a stretch of wilderness that seems unexplored when compared to your all-to-familiar routes to and from work. Getting settled into a traffic bottleneck, you recall that patch of wild earth you saw. You wonder not so much about what exploring it would reveal, only how glad you would be to be there at that very moment.
Sure, you may get a break at work, but what you’re after is a real escape from the maze of city living.
Some would argue that people require constant mental stimulation, but really the opposite is true. Living in a city environment makes a person’s brain work harder to process all of the random sounds and constant movement around them
The burnout of so much focus can make us irritable and impatient, but spending time outdoors can give your brain a much-needed break. Being in nature puts the brain in a type of cruise control called soft fascination, where you’re relaxed and your mind is focused effortlessly.
Spending time outdoors, away from the routines of urban living, can inspire you to explore.
The River of Grass, At Your Own Pace
If the saying “familiarity breeds contempt” rings true for you, that could be reason enough to break out of the urban sprawl. Taking a canoe trip through the Florida Everglades is a great way to see different varieties of wildlife and immerse yourself in its vast landscape. Or if that’s not your speed, a private airboat tour across the alligator holes and sawgrass is the thrilling reunion with the outdoors you need.
With the hectic pace that modern life is set to, sunrises and sunsets can end up just being bookends to a day. When you visit Mack’s Fish Camp, that stubborn urgency is replaced with a sense of timelessness. Having nature so close to the residential areas of South Florida, the simplicity and stillness of the Everglades can easily be overlooked. If you take the time to see it up close, you’ll discover another world hiding in plain sight.
