Lower Suwannee NWR - Nature Drive

Friday, January 26, 2024

Hi Blog!

Not far from where we are staying in Cedar Key is the Headquarters for the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge. We learned that the nine mile main road through the Refuge is considered a "Nature Drive." The road itself is hardpacked limerock with very little vehicle traffic. Rather than drive the nine miles, we decided to take our bikes for a spin.

The  Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, unlike other Refuges, was not established for the protection of one or a few species, but to protect the high water quality of the Suwannee Estuary. The Refuge has boat launches, fishing, hunting, hiking, birding, photography and bicycling. The white sign pictured below outlines the hunting seasons. Lucky for us feral hog hunting doesn't start until tomorrow! Sometime it is better to be lucky than smart.

We started our ride through an upland pine forest. The trees in this area were thinned out to allow understory plants to anchor the soil and provide food and shelter for a variety of wildlife. Gopher Tortoises are a keystone species in this area. Their burrows are used by over 360 other small species 

The Refuge holds periodic controlled fires to promote open pine forests. Pines are highly resistant to low-intensity prescribed fires.

There are dozens of side roads leading to various parts of the Refuge. Each road has its own numbered gate. We decided to go through Gate 14 which leads to Fletcher's Landing and Suwannee River access.

We came upon an unusual concrete structure. At first, we thought it might be a remnant of an old building. Turns out it was a bat cave. The Refuge uses various concrete and metal culverts to provide roosting habitat for big-eared bats. There are not enough large hollow trees left in the forest for the bats to roost. These structures provide a home for the bats while the forest regrows.

Fletcher's Landing on the Suwanne River is a popular destination for kayakers.

There are over 11 different species of bats that live in the Refuge. This type of roost is mainly used by free-tailed bats. Did you know that bats are not rodents? They are more closely related to primates than to mice.

On our way to Fletcher's Landing, we spotted a flock of wild turkeys. We tried to catch a photo, but they were too quick for us. Pictured below, Kathy is making her way back to the main road.

We stopped at Pond 6 to see if we could see any wading birds.

We weren't able to find any birds, but we did catch this gator napping on the far shore. Needless to say, we didn't stay long.

Most animals in the Refuge are not used to seeing bikes. We scared a river otter and several turtles. We were able to catch a photo of this turtle, but never saw the river otter again.

The Nature Drive passes right over Barnett Creek.

We took a short side road to the boat ramp for Barnett Creek.  The creek is about three and half miles long and joins McCormick Creek before entering the Suwannee River. At the boat launch we saw a transition from upland forest to brackish marsh. The marsh is dominated by black needlerush with an occasional fringe of smooth cordgrass. It seemed to stretch on forever.

Just past the turn-off to the boat ramp is a boardwalk leading to the headwaters pond.

This headwaters pond attracts several species of waterfowl in the winter. From the observation deck, we scanned the area.

We spotted this tricolored heron on the far shore.

He didn't like the sound of our camera clicking and immediately took flight.

While the heron was in flight mode, this little fiddler crab decided to stand his ground and put up a fight.

As the day warmed, we soon noticed several armadillos by the side of the road. While used to seeing cars drive by, they didn't know what to make of our bicycles. One armadillo tried to run right into Kathy's front wheel. Their "run into danger" strategy reminded us of armored squirrels.

By the time we finished our ride, we had clocked more than 19 miles. There is still more to explore in the Lower Suwannee Wildlife Refuge, but now that hunting season has opened, it will have to wait until next time.