Top 10 Critters we find on our Kayak Tours
February 2, 2018 | Paddle Marco
It’s always our goal to find as much wildlife as possible on our Mangrove Tunnels Kayak Tour. There are a few factors that come into play when it comes to finding wildlife on our kayak tours. The tide needs to be just right, the wind needs to be calm and the sun has to be shining. Below are the top 10 critters that we love to find during our tours and when you’re most likely to see them. All photos were taken by our guides.
1) Manatee – Found in the summer during high tide.
The West Indian Manatee occupies this part of southwest Florida. During the warmest summer months, we get lucky and see Manatees a few times per week. They are feeding on sea grass in the middle of the bays. Often times, one will swim right up next to our kayaks. They can stay under the water for aprox 15 minutes but usually surface every 3-4 minutes. These gentle giants can weigh up to 1200 lbs and eat 10 percent of their bodyweight in a day! We don’t see them in the winter, as the water is too cold and Manatees do not have a lot of blubber to protect them from the cold… because they are vegetarians!
2) Dolphin – Found year round in medium & high tide.
We usually find the Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins on kayak tours that have tidal movement. Dolphins are lazy and love to let the tide push them around. These friendly mammals are often heard before they are seen because of their loud blow holes. We usually find them feeding in the open bays and thrashing fish around. They’ll eat around 25 lbs of fish in a single day! Every once in a while we get one swimming 20 MPH under our kayaks in the mangrove tunnels! It’s the coolest experience ever!
3) Batfish – Found on low & medium tide in spring.
This bizarre looking fish lays and waits for his food to swim by and he slurps it up! This fish looks like a bat and a frog combined! It doesn’t actually swim up… it has legs that look like pegs and it dances along the bottom with its outer fins allowing it to steer. Get on a tour with Captain Lewis or our Biologist Susan and you’ll probably find one!
4) Horse Conch – Found on low & medium tide.
The A-Predator of the mudflats. These snails are the biggest in North America and can grow up to 2 FT in length. The snail inside is a bright orange color. These guys will crawl around the bottom and eat other shells and clams. When we find one of these, we are always excited to show our customers… because it’s one of the biggest shells you can find. Did you know it’s also the state shell of Florida?
5) Lightning Whelk – Found on low & medium tide.
The Lightning Whelk is the second largest snail in North America and one of the only shells to open up on the left hand side (also known as a sinistral shell). It’s also the state shell of Texas! These snail’s shells can grow up to 15 inches long! When we find one in the spring, it’s often accompanied by several baby lightning whelk shells next to it. Inside the shell is the snail, which is a shiny black color. Whenever we find one and pull it out of the mud, our customers gasp and everyone wants a picture. Truly a top 5 critter on our kayak tours.
6) Ragged Sea Hare – Found on low tide in the spring.
These weird looking creatures are always fun to find. Poke one and a purple ink will ooze from its body. This defense mechanism confuses predators and clouds their vision under the water. The ink is harmless and washes off easily.
7) Sea Star – Found on low & medium tide.
Before Hurricane Irma, we would find hundreds of 5-arm Sea Stars (also known as starfish) and Sea Urchins on our kayak tours. After Hurricane Irma… we haven’t found a single Sea Star or Sea Urchin. Storm surge and lack of oxygen in the water killed off many of the Sea Stars. Recently, hundreds of 9-arm Sea Stars washed up on shore of Marco Island. Many of them were dead, but it’s important to note that they may be finally crawling their way back into our estuary and that’s a good thing! Jake, our kayak tour photographer also spotted several 5-arm sea stars in the canals; a place where they couldn’t escape the storm surge. Will they be back in the estuary soon? Hope so.
8) Raccoon – Found on low tide.
Raccoons are always a treat! During the low tide, and sometimes the high tide… we can spot Raccoons running through the roots of the mangrove trees in the tunnels. Sometimes we see them swim right in front of us as they cross creeks to get from one island to another! Their only true predator to the raccoon in this area is a bobcat or alligator. Rare to see either of those, but we never say never.
9) Bald Eagle – Found in the spring.
During the spring months, the Osprey are nesting. When the Osprey are nesting… the Bald Eagles appear. Bald Eagles don’t just eat fresh fish… they’ll steal a baby Osprey out of its nest! This is why the female Osprey always stays in her nest while the male Osprey gathers food and fends off the Bald Eagles. It’s always a site to see when a Bald Eagle flies overhead. Often times, an Eagle under 5 years old will be completely brown. Around age 5, they start to develop their signature white head and tail feathers.
10) Mangrove Tree Crab – Found all the time.
There are so many crabs that we find out in Rookery Bay. Mangrove Tree Crabs, Blue Crabs, Horseshoe Crabs, Hermit Crabs, Fiddler Crabs, etc. You are basically guaranteed to see a Mangrove Tree Crab on every kayak tour. They are often confused with a spider because they look just like one! These guys love to scurry along the roots of the red mangroves as we kayak by. If you’re lucky, they’ll jump on your kayak or life jacket and hitch a ride. Don’t worry, they are harmless!
Those are our top 10 critters! We have been lucky enough to spot other critters such as bobcats, snakes, sharks, stingrays, sea urchins and a huge variety of birds too!
The best chance to see at least 5 of the top 10 critters is on a sunny spring morning when the tide is going from low to high.