A fit young woman with a backpack on her back and binoculars in hand looks out for birds under a cloudy sky.

Alligators, herons, ibis and egrets patrol the lake year-round, but other wildlife may change with the seasons.  Ospreys nest on tall cypress in the middle of the lake, and warblers and flycatchers nest in the hardwood uplands around the water’s edge.  Hundreds of sandhill cranes stop over during fall and late winter migration. Turtles such as Florida softshell, yellow-bellied slider, and Florida cooter are seen frequently in the water and basking on logs.