They feed mainly on fish, but will also eat invertebrates, lizards, and amphibians if the opportunity presents itself. If they see you, they will likely swim away from you or go underwater to hide. Often mistaken for cottonmouths, these snakes are nonvenomous and rather shy. The brown water snake and the banded water snake are both found in swamps and shallow waterways. Scientific name: Nerodia taxispilota and fasciata pictiventris Water Snakes Florida banded water snake ( Nerodia fasciata pictiventris) | image by Trish Hartmann via Flickr | CC BY 2.0 Most cottonmouth bites are actually a result of them being stepped on or handled roughly. These snakes do give live birth and can have litters roughly every 2-3 years.Ħ. While they will hold their ground and open their mouths to intimidate predators, they don’t seek out humans to chase down and bite. ![]() These snakes are venomous but are not as aggressive as many people think they are. One of the most hated animals on this list is the cottonmouth, also known as a water moccasin. Pygmy sunfish feed mainly on small worms and invertebrates in their natural habitat. If you do go out collecting in Florida, be sure not to transport any water lettuce as it is an invasive species. You will likely catch either pygmy sunfish, least killifish, or gambusia. If you are in their habitat and want to collect your own, your best bet is to take a hand net to an area with shallow water and lots of water lettuce or other floating plants and dip your net under them. You may also like: 8 Types of Animals That Are Blind (Fun Facts) They are a popular species in the aquarium trade, where they are marketed as nano fish due to their diminutive size. Pygmy sunfish are a common fish in Florida and are frequently found in the roots of floating plants and along the shore in water grasses. Pygmy Sunfish Pygmy Sunfish | image by Brian Gratwicke via Flickr | CC BY 2.0 Often found in swamps and bogs, you could easily walk or swim right past them without noticing as they are great at camouflaging, can hold their breath for up to 50 minutes, and usually just look like big rocks.Ĥ. Unlike softshell turtles, alligator snappers are ambush predators that will wait for a fish or other prey item to swim past their mouth, at which point they snap them up. These behemoth turtles are one of the heaviest species of turtle in the world with males reaching over 200 pounds. Alligator Snapping Turtle Alligator Snapping Turtle | Image by Peter Paplanus / flickr / CC BY 2.0 These turtles will eat just about anything they can get their mouths around, but their most common prey are fish, invertebrates, and amphibians.ģ. This is due in part to predation by alligators, other turtles, snakes, birds, and humans. ![]() Though they are prolific breeders, most hatchlings and young adults will not make it to breeding size. Females will typically lay around 10-40 eggs each clutch and can lay 3-4 clutches per year. Softshell turtles can live over 50 years. These turtles are unique because they have a soft leathery shell instead of a hard keratin shell like most turtles and tortoises and they are actually able to move very quickly on land. ![]() The Florida softshell turtle is commonly seen all over the state but usually stays close to water, living near lakes, rivers, ponds, and swamps. Florida Softshell Turtle Florida Softshell Turtle While alligators aren’t innately vicious, they also won’t turn down a free meal.Ģ. An alligator that is used to getting food from a human will start to see humans as a food source and could become dangerous.īreeding season is the most dangerous time to be around alligators, as males are more territorial than usual and females will protect their nests and their recently hatched babies.Īlways exercise caution when near freshwater in the Southeast, especially if you have small children or pets. The exception to this rule is when people start to feed them. ![]() In reality, alligators are naturally rather shy around humans. Native to the Southeast United States, alligators are thought to be vicious man-eaters by many. Scientific name: Alligator mississippiensis There are several swamps in the United States, but for this article, we will take a closer look at the Florida Everglades and 12 of the animals that live there. In this article we will look at 12 types of animals that live in the swamp. While some animals avoid these marshy areas, they are the perfect environment for many water-loving species. They are transition zones between land and water, and can be freshwater, saltwater or brackish (not as salty as seawater). Swamps are unique ecosystems where water often covers most of the land.
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