Examples of Habitats to Visit in Palm Beach County
Clicking on the conservation area name brings up a page which shows the location, visiting hours, facilities available, a slideshow of views along the trail, and a slideshow of some of the many trees, plants, and other things you may encounter.
These pages require an updated Adobe Flash Player to fully display the scrolling images. Here is a link to download Flash Player: https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
If images are slow to load, try refreshing the page.
Pine Woods
Cypress Creek Natural Area (good but wet and swampy in a lot of the area, not the best choice for pine woods)
DuPuis Management Area (in Martin Co. too, very large area)
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area (very nice and easy)
Jonathan Dickinson State Park (in Martin Co. just N of Palm Beach Co. line, terrific site, go to the Kitching Creek Trail)
Limestone Creek Natural Area (ok for a small urban site)
Riverbend Park (Jupiter) (limited pine woods in places, lovely park but not a great choice for pine woods habitat unless you are a park regular and know where to go)
Royal Palm Beach Pines Natural Area (excellent and easy)
Sweetbay Natural Area (limited and marshy, wonderful site but marginal choice for pine woods as such)
Winding Waters Natural Area
Beach
Blowing Rocks Preserve (excellent)
Loggerhead Park (fair, with easy access but limited species)
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (best!)
Hardwood Hammocks
Delray Oaks Natural Area (oak hammock, urban, interesting and pretty but not much biodiversity)
Gumbo Limbo Nature Center (boardwalk and the mulched Ashley Trail)
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (excellent, don't miss the Satinleaf Trail)
Prosperity Oaks Natural Area (oak hammock, interesting but difficult to access with poor parking options (walk there from Frenchman's forest), low biodiversity, a block from Frenchman's Forest)
Scrub
Delaware Scrub Natural Area (small urban scrub in middle of Jupiter)
Jonathan Dickinson State Park (in Martin Co. just N of PB Co. line, superb scrub, go to Hobe Mountain)
Juno Dunes (across Federal Highway from Loggerhead Park, excellent)
Jupiter Ridge Natural Area (excellent)
Jupiter Inlet Natural Area, Jupiter (fair but not the best)
Hcpoluxo Scrub Natural Area, off of Hypoluxo Rd., Lantana (excellent)
Loggerhead Park, Juno Beach (excellent, park in the lot at the NE corner of the park and find the trail leading through the dunes off the north end of the parking lot)
Rosemary Scrub Natural Area
Seacrest Scrub Natural Area, Boynton Beach
Yamato Scrub Natural Area, Delray Beach (excellent, big area)
Bert Winters Park (fairly good, trail begins on the east side of Ellison Wilson Rd. opposite the park entrance, not in the park)
Mangroves
Frenchman’s Forest Natural Area (small presence at pond overlook, easy to see and a chance to see mangroves in same trip with pine woods and swamp boardwalk, a block away from Prosperity Oaks)
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (excellent)
Marshy Wetlands
Apoxee Trail (ok in places, not the prettiest park, muddy in wet season)
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
Cypress Creek (marshy in places, definitely not a top choice)
Grassy Waters Boardwalk (excellent, easy, nice, safe, top choice)
Jupiter Wetland Trails (good, but only if you know the area, muddy in wet season, avoid during hunting seasons)
Pine Glades Natural Area (okay, take the trail heading east out of the parking lot near the entrance, there is no shade whatsoever)
Solid Waste Authority Greenway Trail System (strong biodiversity, depart from south end of Admin Bldg. parking lot off of Jog Rd.)
Sweetbay Natural Area (excellent!)
Winding Waters Natural Area
Swamp
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
Hungryland Slough Natural Area (excellent but tough to drive to)
Grassy Waters Boardwalk (excellent and easy)
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area (small swamp along the boardwalk, far from parking area)
Riverbend Park (small swamp along boardwalk near parking area)
Clicking on the conservation area name brings up a page which shows the location, visiting hours, facilities available, a slideshow of views along the trail, and a slideshow of some of the many trees, plants, and other things you may encounter.
These pages require an updated Adobe Flash Player to fully display the scrolling images. Here is a link to download Flash Player: https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
If images are slow to load, try refreshing the page.
Pine Woods
Cypress Creek Natural Area (good but wet and swampy in a lot of the area, not the best choice for pine woods)
DuPuis Management Area (in Martin Co. too, very large area)
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area (very nice and easy)
Jonathan Dickinson State Park (in Martin Co. just N of Palm Beach Co. line, terrific site, go to the Kitching Creek Trail)
Limestone Creek Natural Area (ok for a small urban site)
Riverbend Park (Jupiter) (limited pine woods in places, lovely park but not a great choice for pine woods habitat unless you are a park regular and know where to go)
Royal Palm Beach Pines Natural Area (excellent and easy)
Sweetbay Natural Area (limited and marshy, wonderful site but marginal choice for pine woods as such)
Winding Waters Natural Area
Beach
Blowing Rocks Preserve (excellent)
Loggerhead Park (fair, with easy access but limited species)
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (best!)
Hardwood Hammocks
Delray Oaks Natural Area (oak hammock, urban, interesting and pretty but not much biodiversity)
Gumbo Limbo Nature Center (boardwalk and the mulched Ashley Trail)
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (excellent, don't miss the Satinleaf Trail)
Prosperity Oaks Natural Area (oak hammock, interesting but difficult to access with poor parking options (walk there from Frenchman's forest), low biodiversity, a block from Frenchman's Forest)
Scrub
Delaware Scrub Natural Area (small urban scrub in middle of Jupiter)
Jonathan Dickinson State Park (in Martin Co. just N of PB Co. line, superb scrub, go to Hobe Mountain)
Juno Dunes (across Federal Highway from Loggerhead Park, excellent)
Jupiter Ridge Natural Area (excellent)
Jupiter Inlet Natural Area, Jupiter (fair but not the best)
Hcpoluxo Scrub Natural Area, off of Hypoluxo Rd., Lantana (excellent)
Loggerhead Park, Juno Beach (excellent, park in the lot at the NE corner of the park and find the trail leading through the dunes off the north end of the parking lot)
Rosemary Scrub Natural Area
Seacrest Scrub Natural Area, Boynton Beach
Yamato Scrub Natural Area, Delray Beach (excellent, big area)
Bert Winters Park (fairly good, trail begins on the east side of Ellison Wilson Rd. opposite the park entrance, not in the park)
Mangroves
Frenchman’s Forest Natural Area (small presence at pond overlook, easy to see and a chance to see mangroves in same trip with pine woods and swamp boardwalk, a block away from Prosperity Oaks)
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (excellent)
Marshy Wetlands
Apoxee Trail (ok in places, not the prettiest park, muddy in wet season)
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
Cypress Creek (marshy in places, definitely not a top choice)
Grassy Waters Boardwalk (excellent, easy, nice, safe, top choice)
Jupiter Wetland Trails (good, but only if you know the area, muddy in wet season, avoid during hunting seasons)
Pine Glades Natural Area (okay, take the trail heading east out of the parking lot near the entrance, there is no shade whatsoever)
Solid Waste Authority Greenway Trail System (strong biodiversity, depart from south end of Admin Bldg. parking lot off of Jog Rd.)
Sweetbay Natural Area (excellent!)
Winding Waters Natural Area
Swamp
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
Hungryland Slough Natural Area (excellent but tough to drive to)
Grassy Waters Boardwalk (excellent and easy)
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area (small swamp along the boardwalk, far from parking area)
Riverbend Park (small swamp along boardwalk near parking area)