| Summer on Amelia Island is the time for heat-loving
animals with two legs or four. While two-legged humans spread their chairs on the hot
sand, other animals use this sand for their own purposes. Backyard bird feeders attract
colorful residents like our famous painted buntings, and warm-loving lizards can be seen
all over the island hunting for insects. Other animals are also out in masses in the hot,
buggy inland areas, for the adventurous among us to seek out and enjoy. Here are just some
of the animals you might look for on an average summer day on Amelia Island.Turtles and Tortoises
In the summer our sandy beaches are the chosen destination for loggerhead, green and much rarer leatherback sea turtles to lay their clutches of eggs. Visitors to Amelia Island just might see protected turtle nests cordoned off with tape by Turtle Watch volunteers, to protect them from harm. Lucky visitors strolling the beach at night just might see a turtle crawling out of the ocean to make a nest. In the later weeks of summer, equally lucky folks might see some hatchlings crawling out to sea for their first start in a life of migration across the Atlantic Ocean and beyond.
__________ Don't confuse these large nesting sea turtles with another local beach-side resident, the gopher tortoise. In the heat of summer, during early mornings and late afternoons, these soccer-ball sized tortoises hang out within the beach dunes warming in the sun outside the deep holes that they excavate. In a search for the vegetation that they consume, gopher tortoises often forage a distance from their holes and sometimes onto the beach itself. Gopher tortoises are heavy-bodied animals adapted for digging the deep holes they inhabit, but they are not designed for swimming. Pity the poor gopher tortoise that someone mistakes for a sea turtle and drops into the ocean. If you see a gopher tortoise, a species of special concern in Florida, just leave it alone, unless it is crossing a road and needs help. Lizards and Gators Few people can visit Amelia Island without seeing lizards on the buildings and in the vegetation. Often mistakenly called "chameleons", our local lizards are also adept at changing their colors. Both green anoles and Cuban anoles live in and around our homes and harmlessly catch bugs for their sustenance. Green anoles are the true local lizards, and can change color from green to brown, then back again, in a flash. Cuban anoles are less uniform in color and often have distinctive striped backs. Although they can change color it is only from brown to darker brown. The Cuban anoles are newcomers to north Florida and some say are out-competing the resident green anoles. No matter what, it is fun to watch both species as they protrude their throat dewlaps and make threats and passes at one another on a hot summer day.
_________ If you want to see a really big "lizard", you might also be able to see one of our resident alligators. A good, comfortable place to see them is the pond near the deck behind Spanky's Restaurant. Or, if you feel adventurous, wear a lot of insect repellent and traverse the trails of the Egan's Creek Greenway and scan the freshwater ditches and shorelines for basking gators. Don't approach too closely, and keep your pets well away, and these fearsome-looking reptiles will not cause you any harm. Frogs and ToadsGreen tree frogs are a common sight in our backyards, around our buildings, and any place where there is a suitable population of insects to devour. Even if you don't see them, you are likely to be kept awake by their sometimes-deafening evening choruses. When you are digging in your backyard, don't be surprised if you unearth a southern toad, buried in the dirt by day and hopping around at night seeking bugs. Many other frog and toad species are also found on Amelia Island, in and around the retention ponds and natural freshwater systems they call home. SnakesYes, summer is also snake season on Amelia Island. The most commonly seen snakes are harmless, long, skinny black racers or brightly-colored red or yellow rat snakes. These snakes serve a useful purpose, keeping the world free of over-populating rodents, and should not be disturbed. We do have poisonous snakes, including diamondback and pygmy rattlesnakes, water moccasins and coral snakes, but you are very unlikely to see any of them. These poisonous snakes don't want to bother you, and your best strategy is to leave them alone.
________________ Birds Summer birdlife on Amelia Island is colorful, rich and bountiful. Ruby-throated hummingbirds spend their summers with us, sipping nectar from bottlebrush plants and honeysuckles and nectar feeders. Gaudy painted buntings often are seen in Fort Clinch State Park and anywhere on the island where bird feeders are stocked with the millet they prefer. Bluebirds also summer with us, and chase insects over wide open spaces, often nesting in birdhouses that some of us provide for them.
____________ And, of course, no one can fail to see pelicans along the beach and boat docks, and our resident herons and egrets along the marshes, beaches and ponds in our interior. Lucky birdwatchers might also see the pink-colored roseate spoonbills that sometimes visit the salt water areas of the Greenway, bald eagles in the sky and osprey diving into the ocean to catch fish. Over and above these common sights, there's no telling what wildlife you might see on Amelia Island in the summer. With a geographic location not quite "north" and not quite "south", we have wildlife from all areas that visit us at times. But, don't wander far without bug repellent. There are plenty of bugs for animals to eat and bugs to eat us, too. Don't let this bother you. Get out and enjoy! Note: Pat is a Ph.D. zoologist, international biodiversity specialist and nature watcher on Amelia Island. Watch for her weekly column "Wild Ways" on Wednesdays in the News-Leader.
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