Planning a trip to Florida this winter? Be careful when you're outside
It’s a fact that a lot of New Yorkers are leaving this state in rather large, even impressive numbers. Many of them are are heading for Florida, the “Sunshine State,” either as a nice place to visit for a few weeks or as a more permanent place to live.
And I’ll be the first to admit that Florida has a lot to offer newcomers in the way of sunshine and warmth, especially during the winter months.
But newcomers to the state, especially those who like to hike, fish from shore, canoe or kayak, camp or any similar activities should learn about the many fauna and flora hazards that abound over many parts of that otherwise beautiful state. They range from dangerous to deadly, and all can be avoided, even at relatively close ranges.
I’ll begin with the flora. The usual suspects of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac are present in sufficient quantities in virtually all wooded areas. None of them are deadly (except for those with any allergy to them), but the ensuing rash can be nothing short of miserable. Knowledge about what they look like can save a lot of misery.
Continuing with flora, there are two species of trees that must be avoided at all costs because one can kill an unwary hiker and the other is almost as deadly and can cause death in some cases.
The most dangerous is the manchineel tree. It is also well known as the “tree of death” and may actually be the most deadly tree in the world. Its bark, wood, small limbs, sap and leaves are all deadly poisons.
Even the smoke from burning the wood can kill. The first Spanish explorers called the fruits of this tree the “little apple of death.” And with good reason. A single bite into the fruits, without eating any of it, is still fatal.
Fortunately it is limited to the extreme Southeast Florida coastal area, and many of these trees have been safely destroyed. If you find one never touch it or even sit under it.
And the poisonwood tree is almost as dangerous. Metopium toxiferum is found from the northern most Key islands to the southern tip of the state. They are numerous along some of the hiking trails around the Big Cypress and everglades areas.
The most obvious way to identify them is to look at the leaves. If a tree or shrub in or around the big swamp areas looks like it is in need of watering it is probably one of these potential killers.
Let’s get on with the fauna portion of this article because there are lots of really dangerous animals, reptiles amphibians and lower order lifeforms.
I’ll begin with the obvious. There are a lot of alligators all over the Southeast U.S. and Florida is one of the “hubs” for these big, ugly reptiles. And even the little babies can infect a person if he or she is bitten. They carry lots of bacteria from two weeks after they hatch.
But it is the big gators that cause the most problems, and there are a lot of big alligators. More importantly, they can be found just about anywhere. People have found them inside homes and garages and under carports and cars. They can be found in storm drains, swamps, creeks, ponds, swimming pools and rivers. They are a potential hazard wherever they might be found.
Case in point, a woman with friends was fishing on the bank of a backwater slue, and having a good time with laughing and photo taking. Suddenly one of her friends, who was taking a longer distance photo, suddenly started yelling at the fisher woman to get back and up on shore quick.
Fortunately the angler got up and moved back quickly and didn’t ask why. It seems her friend saw a large alligator sneaking up on the angler, and it was within two or three feet of her left leg. And that critter was estimated to be eight or nine feet long.
It isn’t only alligators that are dangerous to humans. Florida has a booming (and still growing) population of wild or feral hogs. They may be even more dangerous than gators, mainly because they will attack humans without provocation if the mood strikes them.
And the big boars have really nasty tusks. When you mix a critter (that always seems to be in a bad mood) with sharp teeth, trouble is sure to follow.
There are three species of poisonous snakes in the Sunshine State, the eastern diamondback rattlesnakes (and a couple of lesser species of rattlers), cottonmouth water moccasins, and coral snakes. The first two are the real trouble makers.
The coral snakes generally are shy, coming out of their holes most often at night and being both shy and rather docile around humans. And they are rear-fanged snakes like cobras, which makes biting on a finger unlikely at best. Their mouths are small. Just remember that if a red ring on their skin touches a yellow ring, or the snake has a black snout, stay clear if it.
But the other two are real potential dangers to humans. Both rattlers (actually three species) and water moccasins are usually short tempered and easy to get irritated. And adults of both species pack along large venom glands. Adults of either species can kill or severely injure adult men. Medical treatment is required if anyone gets “hit” by any species of poisonous snake.
There is another species of snake that is now found across southern Florida. Burmese pythons have now set up shop around the everglades and are fast moving toward Tampa and other populated areas. And they are more dangerous than most people might believe.
Pythons are one of the closest critters to perfect killing machines. A big specimen can reach 12 feet. Some have been found in Florida that exceeded 15 feet in length. And the record to date is a 17-foot female that had 70 eggs inside her when she was caught.
But don’t be fooled because smaller pythons as short as 7 feet are responsible for injuries and (a few) deaths of both children and adults. At the same time pythons are disrupting (and destroying) the native fauna, much of which is unique to that south Florida habitat.
I have only named a few of the most dangerous animals. But this deep-south state has a lot more problems to deal with.
Large green iguanas are a species of big, rather ugly lizards that can reach nearly five feet in length, have infested many parts of the state. Fortunately they are herbivores, eating local vegetation. And they often spend their nights high in local trees, which causes the most danger when nights turn very cold and these lizards fall out and down from their roost in trees.
The green anaconda has been spotted in several places in the Sunshine state, and some were considered to be “around” 14 to 17 feet long. In their native habitat in South America, the reliably largest known specimen was well over 20 feet long. And one unreliable report of a specimen was said to be over 35 feet long. I don’t believe that one, but …
Florida has a growing population of Cane toads. These large critters can weigh from four to nine pounds. The main problem with them is their highly poisonous glands behind their eyes. Animals such as dogs that bite into those glands often die within a couple hours, and there is no known cure. Even their tadpoles are toxic.
This is only a partial listing of the potential wildlife hazards that can be found in Florida. You can find more complete listing of hazardous or feral wildlife with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. And the list is a long one, too.
Contact outdoor columnist Len Lisenbee at lisenbee@frontiernet.net.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Planning a trip to Florida this winter? Be careful when you're outside
