The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000-acre, peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia–Florida line in the United States. A majority of the swamp is protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness.

What is the Okefenokee Swamp known for?

Okefenokee is famous for its amphibians and reptiles such as toads, frogs, turtles, lizards, snakes, and an abundance of American alligators, including the oldest known alligator named Okefenokee Joe who died in September 2021. It is also a critical habitat for the Florida black bear.

What makes the Okefenokee Swamp Unique?

Why is the Okefenokee Swamp Unique

Okefenokee Swamp is known to be the largest black water swamp in the United States. It's also known for being one of the few remaining habitats for the American alligator and bald eagle.

What happens at Okefenokee Swamp?

The Okefenokee Swamp has a rainy season and a dry season. The rainy season is normally from June through September. Rainfall is an important source of water for the swamp. Flooding, drought and fire are part of the natural processes that occur in the Okefenokee.

Is the Okefenokee Swamp the largest freshwater?

The Great Okefenokee Swamp is one of North America's most unspoiled, fascinating, and precious natural areas. It is the largest, intact, un-fragmented, freshwater, and black water wilderness swamp in North America.

Okefenokee Swamp | Georgia's Physical Features

How many alligators are in the Okefenokee Swamp?

Okefenokee hosts an estimated 10,000 to 13,000 gators (according to Sherpa Guides), and they blend perfectly in water that is heavily stained by rotting vegetation.

What kind of snakes live in the Okefenokee Swamp?

Harmless water snakes are the most likely to be spotted in the Okefenokee. Cottonmouths, diamondback rattlesnakes, and canebrake rattlesnakes are the largest venomous species in the swamp. Blue-tailed skinks and green anoles are the most common lizards.

Can you fish in the Okefenokee Swamp?

The Okefenokee is home to 39 species of fish. The angler can expect to hook a few of the most common species in the swamp. These catches afford any angler of any age an experience worthy of remembering. ... The Okefenokee is home to the Georgia State record for the largest Bowfin (Amia calva) ever caught.

When did Okefenokee Swamp burn?

The 2007 fire in the swamp had perhaps the biggest impact, with a total cost of about $130 million, including $65 million in lost timber and $44 million in firefighting costs, Meyer said. Over 6,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes, and area schools closed, as did state roads and interstates.

How was Okefenokee Swamp formed?

In more recent geologic times the depression forming the basin of the present-day Okefenokee Swamp was presumably created by wave action associated with an offshore sandbar. Today the depression is filled with fresh water and peat to create what Seminoles called the “land of trembling earth.”

Why is Okefenokee Swamp water black?

Deep in the South, on the border of Georgia and Florida, lies the Okefenokee Swamp — the largest blackwater swamp in the United States. Its dark color is the product of years of slow-moving water filtering through vegetation and decay.

What's the largest swamp in the world?

Swamps can be found on all continents except Antarctica. The largest swamp in the world is the Amazon River floodplain, which is particularly significant for its large number of fish and tree species.

Why is the Okefenokee Swamp called the land of trembling earth?

The interior wetlands of the Okefenokee Swamp within Georgia have been designated the state's largest Wilderness. Native Americans called the swamp the "land of trembling earth" because the unstable peat deposits that cover much of the swamp floor tremble when stepped on. ... Fire and water define the swamp's habitats.

Who lives in the Okefenokee Swamp?

• American Alligator. Both a fearsome predator and a tender parent, the alligator is the swamp's most famous resident. ...
• Sandhill Crane. ...
• Gopher Tortoise. ...
• Longleaf Pine. ...
• Okefenokee Swamp.

What is the biggest swamp in America?

The Atchafalaya Basin is the nation's largest river swamp, containing almost one million acres of America's most significant bottomland hardwoods, swamps, bayous and backwater lakes. The basin begins near Simmesport, La., and stretches 140 miles southward to the Gulf of Mexico.

What state has the most swamp?

Florida. Florida is home to 20% of all wetlands in the United States. Depending on where you live in this peninsula state, you'll find different types of wetlands, including swamps, marshes, bayheads, bogs, cypress domes, sloughs, wet prairies, river swamps, tidal marshes, mangrove swamps, and more!

Is the Okefenokee Swamp on fire?

FOLKSTON, GA — A massive wildfire burning in south Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp has engulfed more than 200 square miles, causing evacuations as firefighters work in vain to bring the blaze under control. The fire was started by lightning on April 6 in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

Can a swamp catch fire?

When drought strikes wetlands made up of largely organic soils, they sometimes dry out enough to burn during fires. Recent examples in Florida include the Okefenokee and Levy Prairie fires in North Florida in 2011, said Watts.

Is the Okefenokee swamp still on fire?

With the West Mims Fire having burned nearly 81,000 acres of the southern Okefenokee Swamp, Okefenokee Swamp Park off U.S. 1 south of Waycross is one of only two water access points still open. ... The West Mims Fire has now burned 126 square miles or about one fifth of the 400,000-acre refuge.

Are there largemouth bass in the Okefenokee Swamp?

Largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, shellcrackers, and channel catfish… all species that you can forget about catching on a fishing trip to the “land of the trembling earth,” the Okefenokee Swamp.

How deep is the Okefenokee Swamp?

There are 120 miles of water trails in the Okefenokee Swamp that can be enjoyed by boaters and paddlers. Most of the swamp is on average 2 feet to ten feet deep.

What animals live in the Okefenokee?

Wildlife species include Florida raccoons, wading birds, ducks, American alligators and other reptiles, a variety of amphibians, North American river otters, Florida bobcats, raptors, Eastern American red foxes, wild boars, common minks, Virginia white-tailed deer, gray foxes, Florida skunks, Florida black bears, and ...

Where is the Okefenokee Swamp located?

The Okefenokee Swamp is located in Ware, Charlton, and Clinch Counties, Georgia and Baker County, Florida. Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge was established by Executive Order in 1936. The Okefenokee Swamp covers 438,000 acres. It is 38 miles in length at its longest point by 25 miles in width at its widest point.

What do alligators eat in Okefenokee Swamp?

Small, weak animals are often sought out. "Alligators mostly feed on fish, turtles, mice, muskrats and birds," said Howard Hunt, Curator of Reptiles at Zoo Atlanta. "I've even seen adults go after grasshoppers and millipedes before." The type of food ingested also depends on the size of the gator.