Flamingos to Enjoy

  

Flamingos
Flamingo Gardens
Ft Lauderdale, FL
January 4, 2022

Question.

What is my favorite bird? 

Answer:

Flamingo! 

Spoonbill
Flamingo Gardens
Ft Lauderdale, FL
January 4, 2022

Chris and I found a small piece of paradise called Flamingo Gardens Botanical Gardens and Wildlife Sanctuary close-by in Fort Lauderdale. 

We spent a relaxing afternoon touring the gardens and enjoying the wildlife most of which roams freely around the grounds. 

The variety of waterbirds and local animals is fun to enjoy as well as seeing multiple tropical plants and trees that we might never enjoy in person. The history of the area is engaging and I found out that originally the farm was planted as an orange grove and the clementine and tangelo were both developed on-site. 

The tour of the original house constructed by the owners, which is now a museum, was very interesting and enjoyable as it is furnished in original and period furniture and accessories. It provides a snapshot of a working farmhouse of the 1930's. I was most impressed with the correspondence from President Eisenhower upon the receipt of a case of oranges for his personal use. 

And the multitude of botanical plantings on the property are not to be ignored. It is not often that I see a real coffee tree with beans and a huge grove of banana plants and I had never driven through a mango grove before. 

Flamingo
Flamingo Gardens
Ft Lauderdale, FL
January 4, 2022

But it was the birds, the huge flock of ibis and the roaming peafowl, that were the stars of the show. The display of flamingos really stole my heart and time and became the subject of a large number of images. 

As might be expected, this spot  is now on my visitor tour list. It is a long-ish drive from Jupiter, about one-hour-and-a-quarter, but definitely worth the time investment. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL