This list has been assembled from years of exploring Florida and with the help of the people listed at the end. It is intended on list only the best location for viewing a particular animal. There are, of course, countless places to see an alligator in Florida. If there is an animal you would like to see listed, or you disagree with a "best" location, please email me or comment. This is meant to be collaborative and I love to learn about new locations.
Regardless, if you visit these places, I guarantee you will have a unique, beautiful, and quintessentially Floridian adventure.
Likelihood indicates how likely you are to actually see the target animal
Difficulty indicates how hard it is to travel/hike/kayak/swim to the location
Question marks obviously mean I need help!
| Animal | Location | Season | Likelihood | Difficulty |
| Mammals | ||||
| Manatee | Crystal River | Winter | High | Easy |
| Black Bear | Seminole State Forest-south gate | Year-round | Low | Easy |
| Key Deer | No Name Key, Florida Keys | Year-round | High | Easy |
| Florida Panther | Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge | Year-round | Low | ? |
| Dolphin | Cedar Key | Summer/Fall | Medium | Medium |
| River Otters | Wekiva River | Year-round | Medium | Medium |
| Reptiles | ||||
| Gopher Tortoises | Egmont Key, St Petersburg | Non-winter | High | Easy |
| Sea Turtles | John Pennekamp State Park | Year-round | Low | Medium |
| Alligators | Alachua Sink, Gainesville | Year-round | High | Easy |
| Birds | ||||
| Roseate Spoonbills | JN Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge | ? | Medium | Easy |
| Limpkin | Rainbow River, Dunnellon | ? | Medium | Medium |
| Burrowing Owls | FAU Campus, Boca Raton | Year-round | High | Easy |
| Florida Scrub Jay | Oscar Scherer State Park, Osprey | Year-round | High | Easy |
| Migratory Sandhill Cranes | Paynes Prairie, Gainesville | Winter | High | Easy |
| Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers | Black Water State Forest | ? | ? | ? |
| Sooty and Noddy Terns | Dry Tortugas National Park | Non-winter | High | Medium |
| Wood Stork | Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary | ? | Medium | Easy |
| Swallow-tailed Kite | Perdido River WMA or Lake Okeechobee | March-Aug | Medium | Medium |
| Mollusks | ||||
| Liguus Tree Snails | Clyde Butcher Gallery | Year-round | High | Easy |
| Junonia | Sanibel Island | Year-round | Low | Medium |
| Queen Conch | John Pennekamp State Park | Year-round | Medium | Medium |
| Amphibians | ||||
| Gopher Frogs | Archbold Biological Station | Summer/Fall | Low | Medium |
| Insects | ||||
| Atala | ?? | ? | ? | ? |
| Muskmare | Big Scrub Ocala National Forest | Summer/Fall | Medium | Medium |
| Cockroaches | Everywhere | Year-round | Definitely | Easy |
| Fish/Waterlife | ||||
| Sharks | New Smyrna Beach | Year-round | Low | Easy |
| Florida Gar | Blue Springs, Orange City | Year-round | Medium | Medium |
| Cow-nose rays | Fort Desoto County Park | Summer/Fall | High | Easy |
| Bioluminescent Dinoflagellates | North Captiva Island | Summer/Fall | Low | Medium |
| Coral | John Pennekamp State Park | Year-round | High | Medium |
Contributions made by the following people:
http://swampysflorida.com/
http://www.nwfloa.com/
http://bellavidabyletty.blogspot.com/
http://www.visualadjectives.com/
