FLORIDA
Biscayne National Park Preserving its namesake bay — one of the top scuba diving areas in the country — Biscayne Bay National Park is located 20 miles south of Miami. About 95% water and fringed by shoreline mangrove forests, Biscayne also contains part of the world’s third-longest living coral reef, along with the northernmost Florida Keys. With reefs and islands accessible only by boat, the 270-squaremile preserve is the largest marine sanctuary in the National Park Service. Find 10,000 years of human history here as well, involving everything from prehistoric tribes to shipwrecks, pineapple farmers and U.S. presidents.
THE FLORA A ND FAUNA Protecting four distinct ecosystems, Biscayne Bay National Park harbors a staggering diversity of life, including over 600 native fish, neo-tropical water birds, and threatened and endangered species like manatees, sea turtles and the Schaus’ swallowtail butterfly. Underwater, seagrasses sway with the currents. Along the land lies one of the longest, continuous stretches of mangroves on Florida’s east coast, giving way to rare and endangered plants like the Florida semaphore cactus and buccaneer palm, the rarest palm native to Florida.
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UNITED VAN LINES NATIONAL PARKS GUIDE
SOUTHEAST
