Part of Gulf Islands
National Seashore, the Naval Live Oaks Area preserves
1,400 acres for educational and recreational opportunities.
The park is named after the beautiful oak trees that
grow along the Intracoastal Waterway, Santa Rosa Sound.
Draped at times in Spanish moss, these huge trees can
grow up to 50 feet in height and live as long as 300
years. A short interpretive trail located behind the
visitor center explains the use of live oaks for shipbuilding
in the 1800’s. The park also features picnic
area, pavilion, group camping, and several short hiking
trails.
Landscape & Wildlife: This
mainland forest community offers hikers and bikers
a likely encounter with wildlife. Commonly spotted
animals include five-line skinks, gray squirrels,
and a variety of birds such as osprey, belted kingfishers,
and woodpeckers. Vegetation along the trails include
hickory, southern magnolia, red basil, conradina,
and more.
*Birding: From
the sound shoreline south of the visitor center parking,
scope for goldeneye, scaup and other wintering ducks.
As always in migration, check the live oaks for which
this area was named; black-and-white warblers pick
through resurrection fern on the sides of oaks in
winter, and brown creepers are occasionally found
scaling the trees.
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