Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

January 24, my Colloquium class and I took a field trip to the Corkscrew Sanctuary to check out all the different habitats and find a way to incorporate the concept of sustainability. I was looking forward to this field trip because for one, I had never been and two, I wanted to see all the different environments and hopefully be lucky enough to spot some interesting wildlife. Upon arriving there, I liked that we were met by some of the staff of the Sanctuary because of the information that they gave to us. It was really surprising to learn that the Sanctuary is basically self sustaining and how they recycle their own waste by heavy steps of anaerobics and aerobics as well. If I was asked upon arriving to guess how old I thought that the premise was, I might have just said maybe a hundred years or so. But no, 400 to 500 years! It was truly exhilarating to be in a place that was older than the people who had first come to Florida. It was nice to see something preserved, because all the trees, animals and sounds just made me feel so relaxed and at home with myself. Even breathing, the air felt different; it didn't have all the industrial toxins that city air has. I also enjoyed learning about the background of the Sanctuary, and how they had come to be by protecting birds that were slaughtered for their brilliant plumage. A brief trend in fashion that I will never understand. While we were walking, I was most excited about seeing the different wildlife that inhabited the area, seeing Red Shouldered Hawks, Anhingas, baby alligators, it was really amazing to think about how all these different species, all requiring different environments to survive, could manage. It was also really cool to see how quickly the habitats seemed to change; how they could go from dry Pine areas, to Cypress swamps in just a few steps. I thought this field trip was an enjoyable one and it was a good opportunity to get out into the environment, get away from all the technology that exists, and just see what is around. The only thing I was a little disappointed with was the limited wildlife we got to see. I was hoping maybe to see a few deer, bigger adult Alligators, and if we got lucky enough, the great Florida Panther. But I can imagine that these animals probably get way more of us than they'd like and they probably spend their time on their own doing their own things. This whole experience gave me a sense of calm, it made me forget all the stress that's going on in my life right now, allowing me to focus on what was right in front of me. After taking this trip, I would like to go back again soon, and bring my dad who shares my feelings of being outside, or my friends who I think would like to see this. Other than that, I fully enjoyed myself and I'm glad we could all go see what beauty nature still holds.