Audubon Field Guide to Florida

National Audubon Society Field Guide to Florida
by Peter Alden, Rick Cech, Gil Nelson
1998

Florida's flora and fauna are so different from Michigan's that I regularly see unfamiliar birds, trees, and wildflowers. Several years ago I bought this compact field guide for my occasional visits to the state.

It's an excellent book that provides brief descriptions and glossy photos of over 1000 living things in Florida, from Longleaf Pines (Pinus palustris) to Moon Jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) to Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) and American Alligators (Alligator mississippiensis).

An introductory section gives an overview of Florida's topography & geology, its major habitats, and the night skies. Then comes the heart of the book, almost 300 pages devoted to individual species. The book concludes with a section on Florida's Parks and Preserves that describes dozens of sites in each region of Florida, with color photos and regional maps.

I recommend this guide highly.

Available fromAmazon and other booksellers.

This post is part of a series on Florida's Gulf Coast