Here are some photos taken while bicycling through the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island in Florida. This wildlife refuge is one of 560 refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. The System, encompassing over 150 million acres, is the nation’s largest network of lands and waters managed specifically for wildlife. Jay “Ding” Darling was instrumental in the effort to block the sale of a parcel of environmentally valuable land to developers. At Darling’s urging, President Harry Truman signed an executive order creating the Sanibel National Wildlife Refuge in 1945. The refuge was renamed in 1967 in honor of the conservationist. While cycling through the refuge, I saw many species of birds and several alligators in their natural pristine environment.
Sanibel is a very charming island. Fast food and chain restaurants are not allowed. Most buildings are one or two stories, the result of strict land use and building regulations.
The taller building were built before the existing land use rules. However, the most beautiful part of the island, including the miles of beaches adorned with pink seashells, is the wildlife refuge. Only in the refuge can one see the island as it looked when the island formed 5000 years ago when sea levels stabilized. Spotting an alligator from a distance of about 75 yards was the most interesting part of the day. Much to my astonishment, the alligator turned directly towards me, swimming efficiently and effortlessly, reaching the embankment I was standing on in less than five minutes. I didn’t know if the alligator had lunch yet, so I decided to leave before I became lunch.
