Fauna of Florida

From coral reefs of the Florida Keys to the cypress swamps of the Panhandle, the state's diverse habitats are home to a variety of wildlife.

[2] Florida's peninsular geography spans from subtropical to tropical zones, which, combined with its distinctive geology and climate, contribute to habitat diversity and an array of species.

Florida once had a large number of species that formerly occupied the state in prehistoric and historic times, but became locally extinct or extirpated; such as the Florida short-faced bear, Florida black wolf, Dire wolf, Dexteria floridana, Florida bog lemming, Long-nosed peccary, Caribbean monk seal, Carolina parakeet, Great auk, Passenger pigeon, Ivory-billed woodpecker, Bachman's warbler, Dusky seaside sparrow, Pallid beach mouse, Chadwick Beach cotton mouse, Goff's pocket gopher, California condor, Island raccoon, Northern short-tailed shrew,[3] magpie, indigo snake,[4] northern leopard frog,[5] porcupine,[6] great black hawk,[7] red wolf, elk,[8] hog-nosed skunk, gray wolf,[9] underwood's bonneted bat, Pristine mustached bat, white-tailed jackrabbit,[10] band-tailed pigeon,[11] jaguar, margay, jabiru,[12] ocelot, ghost-faced bat, collared peccary,[13] great-tailed grackle, ringed kingfisher, common opossum,[14] gray-breasted crake, Northern jacana, yellow-headed caracara, ruffed grouse,[15] Southern lapwing and greater prairie chicken.

Terrestrial species; the Florida panther, northern river otter, mink, eastern cottontail rabbit, marsh rabbit, raccoon, striped skunk, squirrel, white-tailed deer, bobcat, red fox, gray fox, coyote, beaver, Florida black bear, nine-banded armadillo, and Virginia opossum.

The park began culling excessive animals in 2012, allowing a target population of about 8 to 10 bison to be free to roam the Florida prairie.

[19][20][21] Bird species include the Peregrine falcon,[22] bald eagle, American flamingo,[23] crested caracara, snail kite, osprey, white and brown pelicans, sea gulls, whooping and sandhill cranes, roseate spoonbill, American white ibis, Florida scrub jay (state endemic), and others.

There have been small numbers of several new species normally native to cooler areas to the north: snowy owls, snow buntings, harlequin ducks, and razorbills.

Florida is home to forty nine native species of amphibians, including 29 frogs, 19 salamanders and 4 that are of special concern.

[36][37] There are wide numbers of Crustaceans, Cephalopods, and Medusozoas in the ocean and coral reefs close to Florida.

Chiropsalmus quadrumanus, Phyllorhiza punctata, Portuguese man o' war and Glaucus atlanticus are also seen in Florida beach waters.

[42] Some exotic species living in Florida include the Burmese python, Red lionfish, Common lionfish, Boar–pig hybrid, green iguana, veiled chameleon, Argentine black and white tegu, peacock bass, mayan cichlid, Africanized bee, White-nosed coati, rhesus macaque, vervet monkey, Cuban tree frog, cane toad, Indian peafowl, monk parakeet, tui parakeet, and many more.