Any wildlife along the nature trails (Dunedin, Westchase: snake, parks, island)

[NYmikef]

Is there any wildlife along any of the nature trails in the area?

I was visisting in November and walked the Arrowhead trail at Fort DeSoto and the full nature trail on Caladesi Island.

Very nice trails, I found Caledesi and little nicer and better marked, but no wildlife at all at either. No birds, not even a squirrel. Both trails were basically deserted so the humans didn't scare them away.

Was it just the wrong time of the year, or am I on the wrong trails to see animal life.

I will be visiting again again in January so hoping for some suggestions on any trails in Pinellas or Pasco and maybe even further north, or do I need to wait until spring?

[BucFan]

I ran six mile trail at Little Manatee and prayed no snake, raccoon, armadillos, or anything else would pop out. I think there were alligators on the creeks. Kind of a boring trail - felt like running in a jungle at times.

https://www.floridastateparks.org/pa...-Manatee-River

[MAniacTHW]

I mean, myself personally, if I were looking to see wildlife, the first place that comes to mind is Lettuce Lake Park. The water has gators, the trails are sure to have something exciting.

If that's not exciting enough, drive through Westchase late enough as night and you'll run into a ton of deer.

[ms murrr]

We saw an armadillo, a tortoise, some bald eagles (and lots of mosquitoes) on the nature trail at Honeymoon Island recently. Was really awesome. Bring bug spray.

ETA: We also went on one of those ranger-guided night hikes at Boyd Hill a couple of weeks ago. The ranger pointed out some wildlife we definitely would have missed, had we been on our own.

[Badbird2000]

Check out Weedon Island park, they have some pretty nice trails also.

[Wwanderer]

I'm surprised that you didn't at least see ospreys out on Caladesi, or pelicans out on the water (as well as gulls). But the pelicans tend to be mating I think at that time of year, and are off in their rookeries, and the ospreys don't start coming back to nest until late December usually, and they the town of Dunedin is lousy with them.

The Honeymoon Island nature trails have lots of ospreys, dozens of nests, there's an eagle nest and an owl nest. I've seen tortoises there too, and lots of birds. John Chestnut Sr. Park up on Lake Tarpon has 'gators, lots of water birds and at certain times of the year migratory songbirds passing through.

I'm constantly in awe of the wildlife here, so I suspect it was just bad luck. Driving around town this morning I saw wood storks, ibises and egrets, this latter species being also ubiquitous--if you see a statue of an egret in someone's garden, it's likely not a statue, lol.