Ecotourism

ECOTOURISM AND THE FL IDA KEYS

BY SID DOBRIN

The famed Florida Keys remain one of Florida’s primary tourist destinations. Tourists fl ock to this coral cay archipelago for the tropical weather and world-class fi shing, lobstering and diving, not to mention the island lifestyle and the legendary restaurants and bars.

Increasingly, too, especially in the last decade, tourists make the Florida Keys their destination because of the opportunities to visit natural places and to learn about those natural environments.

Marine environments dominate the Florida Keys, and tourists from all over the world come to the islands to snorkel and dive in the subtropical waters. Th e seven celebrated Florida Keys reefs provide tourists with the freedom to visit and learn about these threatened environments that are home to more than 75 species of coral, more than 6,000 species of tropical and subtropical fi sh, as well as sponges, lobster, crab, shrimp and sea urchins. (See page 56 in this issue for more about work to protect and restore these remarkable reefs.)

In addition to the Florida Keys reefs, tourists now visit the Keys for the unique opportunities to kayak or paddleboard through the natural tidal creeks that fl ow among the mangroves throughout the islands. Th ese creeks and mangroves are home to more than 285 species of shorebirds and seabirds and are a fantastic destination for amateur and

A kayaker explores a mangrove environment at John Pennekamp State Park in Key Largo. Mangos play an important role as erosion-preventing shoreline stabilizers.

devout birders. From the upper Keys across the island chain to Key West and out to the Dry Tortugas, the Keys’ natural environments are wonderful locations to visit.

In the upper Keys, there are many ecotourism possibilities. Local environments are influenced by the mixing of freshwater from the Everglades and the saltwater of Florida Bay, providing ideal habitats for West Indian manatees, who frequent the area in the winter when waters to the north cool. Florida Bay and the Gulf side of Key Largo are also home to five species of sea turtles: loggerhead, green turtles, leatherbacks, Kemp’s ridley and hawksbill, all of which are listed as either threatened or endangered. Key Largo is also home to Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge, part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System. Opened in 1980, the Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge was developed to provide and protect breeding and nesting habitats for the endangered American crocodile. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service maintains a nature center at the location for visitors. Likewise, ecotourists and birders will appreciate visiting the Florida Keys Wild Bird Center, a five-acre site that is home to native and migratory birds.

Further down the archipelago, ecotourists can experience a marine wilderness — one of the most unique in the world on Islamorada.

U.S. Highway 1 extends 2,370 miles from Fort Kent, Maine, to its southerly terminus at Key West, Florida.

WILLIAMHC / ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS Green sea turtle

Yellowtail snappers and sergeant majors

Home to expansive grass flats and tidal flats, the waters surrounding Islamorada provide visitors the chance to see sea turtles, dolphins, crocodiles, manatees, fish and birds, including roseate spoonbills. On the Atlantic Ocean side of Islamorada, tourists can take a private boat over to Indian Key and visit the Indian Key State Historic Site, one of the many Florida Keys inhabited by Native Americans thousands of years ago.

Midway down the Florida Keys island chain, visitors can experience the grandeur of Marathon Key. The waters off Marathon are bespeckled with shoals and shallow-water coral humps, many of which are accessible by kayak. These near-shore coral patches are home to sea turtles and an abundant array of tropical fish. Speaking of fish, in May and June each year, the Seven Mile Bridge (which was first built between 1909 and 1912 to connect Knight’s Key in Marathon — part of the middle Keys — with Little Duck Key, the first Key of the Lower Keys) becomes a temporary home to thousands of migrating tarpon. Anglers from around the world visit the area to try to catch a “silver king.” In the interior of Marathon, the 64-acre Crane Point Hammock provides visitors

A lighthouse marks the location of a reef off Marathon in the Florida Keys.

Coral reefs at Key West, above, and at Fort Jefferson, right, support myriad forms of marine life, making them a mecca for snorkelers. The reefs account for much of the world’s biodiversity.

the opportunity to hike through a Florida Keys hammock that is populated by tropical hardwood trees.

Once you cross over Seven Mile Bridge and enter the Lower Keys, the island chain bends to the west. Over the years, tides and storms have deposited sand and seeds in this area, creating thousands of small, uninhabited mangrove islands and shallow-water grass flats. This area provides some of the most spectacular backcountry habitats in the Florida Keys and is famous for backcountry fishing for species like bonefish, permit, tarpon and snook. The region also provides tourists with nearendless shallow waters for kayaking and wading. Back on the land, Big Pine Key’s National Key Deer Refuge is home to the famous — and endangered — key deer, a subspecies of white-tailed deer that have adapted to the limited habitat of Big Pine Key and have evolved to be the smallest North American deer species.

World-famous Key West punctuates the end of the Florida Keys archipelago like an exclamation point for ecotourism. Famous for its remarkable sunsets, Key West is surrounded by shallow waters teeming with life. Snorkelers and divers flock to Key West for the chance to swim in emerald waters over grass flats and coral reef patches. Approximately 70 miles west of Key West, tourists can visit, either by plane or boat, Fort Jefferson, a Civil War-era fort located in the Dry Tortugas National Park, the westernmost islands in the Florida Keys chain. The waters around Fort Jefferson are home to abundant sea life and healthy coral reefs. The area is home to breeding grounds for many tropical bird species as well. Dry Tortugas National Park is part of the Everglades & Dry Tortugas Biosphere Reserve, which was established by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1976.

From Key Largo to Key West and out to the Dry Tortugas, the Florida Keys remain one of the most exciting and vital destinations for ecotourists.

PHOTOS BY EDB3_16 (REEF) AND JEFFREY K COLLINS (FORT JEFFERSON) / ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS Fort Jefferson