Sunday, September 2, 2012

Everglades Tours: A Travellers Guide to Miami: Airboating in the Everglades

 


Everglades Tours: A Travellers Guide to Miami: Airboating in the Everglades



The Everglades National Park is the third largest national park and is the very first national park of its kind. Before the Everglades, all national parks were intended to protect natural geographic features, such as the geysers of Yellow Stone National Park. The Everglades National Park is unique in that it was meant to preserve the ecosystem, rather than a geological facet.



The redirection of water from Lake Ockeechobee and land reclamation efforts, led to a boom in the development of the South Florida metropolitan area. The residents of the Florida felt the need to protect the Everglades as more and more of it was disappearing every day. The Everglades National Park was first established in 1934 in order to prevent the total destruction of the Everglades.



Miami Airboat Rides Everglades Tours – Riding an Airboat



An airboat is a water faring vessel that is somewhat akin to a hovercraft. Like the hovercraft, the airboat doesn’t have a submerged propeller to provide motion. Instead it uses a very powerful aircraft propeller to move it forward. What makes airboats suitable for use in the Everglades is that it does not use a submerged motor.  A submerged motor will have a hard time getting through the Everglades given the amount of Sawgrass in the water.



Miami Airboat Rides Everglades – The Glades in a Nutshell



The Everglades as a whole, is a vast ecosystem of interconnected wetlands and forests. The wetlands and forests of the Everglades are fed by a river that moves at a pace of 0.4 km per day. This river is few from Lake Okeechobee and moves its way southwest, eventually reaching the Florida Bay.



The Everglades is a natural habitat for a lot of animals, endangered or otherwise. The Everglades National Park has a vast mangrove ecosystem. These mangroves are the largest in the western hemisphere, making the Everglades the most important breeding grounds for wading birds in North America.



Around 36 endangered species of animals have found habitation in the Everglades. The American crocodile, the Florida Panther, and the West Indian Manatee, are just a few of the endangered wildlife species that can be found inhabiting the Everglades. The ecosystem of the Everglades is so large, rich and diverse that it supports around 40 species of mammals, 50 species of reptiles, 300 species of fish (fresh and saltwater), and 350 species of birds.



The Florida Panther deserves a special mention as it is probably the most endangered species living in the Everglades, with a tiny population of 160.



Miami tours Airboat Rides Everglades – Look for a Deal Online



Finding the best Everglades airboat tours is a simple matter of finding the best price. Majority of all airboat tours that takes people through the Everglades are the same. The only real noticeable difference between each tour is the price. Online websites offer the most competitive prices. Some of these websites even go so far as to cut ticket prices in half, while others offer combo packages at a very low and affordable cost.


Orignal From: Everglades Tours: A Travellers Guide to Miami: Airboating in the Everglades

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