Key Deer (Odocoileus virginianus clavium), Big Torch Key, National Key Deer Refuge.

Florida, part 7: Mammals

Just 15,000 years ago Florida was full of large animals: giant tortoises, sloths and armadillos, mammoths and mastodons, bison and wild horses. They were all killed off as soon as people got there. By the time of European arrival, the largest terrestrial herbivore was white-tailed deer.

Florida white-tailed deer (O. v. osceola), Highlands Hammock State Park.

Florida white-tailed deer, Huguenot Memorial Park.

Its long tail is raised when fleeing a predator - possibly a signal that the deer is alert and fit, so there's no point chasing it.

Florida white-tailed deer, Big Bend Wildlife Management Area.

Everglades white-tailed deer (O. v. seminolus), Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge.

Florida white-tailed deer, Highlands Hammock State Park.

White- tailed deer is common throughout Florida, but less so in the Everglades. A rare dwarf subspecies, weighing just 20-30 kg, occurs in one part of the Florida Keys, where it inhabits pine forests, mangroves and towns.

Florida white-tailed deer, Highlands Hammock State Park.

Key Deer, Pig Pine Key, National Key Deer Refuge.

Florida Manatee, Ichetucknee Springs State Park.

In winter, Florida manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris) enter rivers and canals of northern and central Florida, looking for relatively warm karst springs to spend winter in.

Manatee courtship, ISSP.

Marsh Rabbits (Sylvilagus palustris), Lake Kissimmee State Park.

Feral pigs (Sus scrofa), St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge.

All other large ungulates currently living in Florida are non- native species.

Feral piglets, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge.

Feral pigs, Three Lakes Wildlife Management Unit.

Eastern cottontail (S. floridanus), Archbold Biological Station.

Other native grazers include two species of cottontail rabbits. Marsh rabbit is a good swimmer and inhabits wetlands; Eastern cottontail prefers upland areas. Both are relatively uncommon in southern Florida.

Baby Eastern cottontail, Platt Branch Mitigation Park.

Nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus), HHSP.

Nine-banded armadillo in a burrow, HHSP.

Only a few Florida mammals have South American origin. Nine-banded armadillo has colonized much of the peninsula in the last century, and now it is abundant in the forests of northern Florida. It is very noisy, tame, and easy to see at night.

Nine-banded armadillo, Fort Clinch State Park.

Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), Three Lakes Wildlife Management Area.

Opossum, Myakka River State Park.

Virginia opossum is the only marsupial in North America. It is one of the most abundant mammals in Florida - you can even see it in downtown Miami, where it feeds on garbage, cat food, cockroaches and dead lizards.

Virginia opossum, MRSP.

Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Park.

Eastern gray squirrel, Coral Gables.

Of about 50 native mammals of the peninsula, about a quarter are rodents. Two species of squirrels and cotton rats are diurnal, others usually show up only at night. Eastern gray squirrel, Orlando.

Fox squirrel (S. niger), De Soto National Memorial.

Southern flying squirrel (Glaucomys volans), ABS.

Hispid cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus), Perry Oldenburg Mitigation Park.	Cotton rat is the most common small rodent in marshes.	Hispid cotton rat, Perry Oldenburg Mitigation Park.
	Eastern woodrat (Neotoma floridana), Everglades National Park.
	Woodrats mostly occur in forests.

Hispid cotton rat, Perry Oldenburg Mitigation Park.

Cotton mouse (Peromyscus gossypinus), Chinsegut Wildlife and Environmental Area.

Compared to other parts of the United States, especially the Southwest, southern Florida has surprisingly few mouse-size rodents: the introduced house mouse, which only occurs near human settlement, and relatively common cotton mouse. North of Lake Okeechobee, a few more species of mice and voles occur, including the endangered Florida mouse, which is endemic to Florida scrub. Florida mouse (P. floridanus) tracks, ABS.

Cotton mouse, Chinsegut Wildlife and Environmental Area.

Mexican free-tailed bats (Tadarida brazilensis), ABS.

15 bat species, including some rare caribbean ones, occur on the peninsula. This free- tailed bat colony was located inside a steel basketball pole, which would shake every time a ball hit it, and got very hot on sunny days.

Mexican free-tailed bat, ABS.

Southern flying squirrel, ABS.

Part 8. Carnivores

Back to Part 6