Florida Wildlife Calendar

May

• Tropic birds arrive in Dry Tortugas.
   
• Bald eagles begin migrating north.
   
• Red-cockaded woodpeckers are breeding.
   
• Flathead catfish congregate below Jim Woodruff Dam, Apalachicola River.
   
• Courtship ritual of adult alligators begins, noted by the loud and resounding bellows and water slapping. Continues through June.
   
• Peak flight period for Schaus' swallowtail butterfly in Keys.
   
• The last of the cedar waxwings and goldfinches head for their northern breeding grounds.
   
• Painted buntings nest through summer in northeast Florida.
   
• White swamp lilies dot wet prairies and sloughs in the Everglades.
   
• Least terns nest on beaches, sandy flats, and flat gravel rooftops that look like beaches!
   
• Celebrate International Migratory Bird Day.

• Brown pelican and white ibis young are now visible in nests.

• White-crowned pigeons begin nesting on mangrove islands in Florida Bay.

• Breeding begins for many resident and summer songbirds.

• Bluegill are bedding at the full moon.

• Redbreast sunfish and spotted sunfish begin spawning in rivers.

• Pompano are running in the north Florida surf.

• Green sea turtles will begin nesting more abundantly now through September.

• Lights Out! Sea turtles emerge from their nests and head for the ocean. Females may become confused by lights on the beach.

• Peak of coyote denning season.

• Most bats give birth May through mid-June.

• American lotus in bloom on wetlands.

• Alligator snapping turtles nesting this month.

Top of Page
Wildlife Viewing Home | Where to go in Florida  | Species Spotlight  | Viewing Information 
In Your Back Yard  | Wings Over Florida Birding Certificate Program  | With Your Child 
Publications | Great Florida Birding Trail | Florida Wildlife Calendar