This site, formally the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands, is a wonderful and accessible place to bird. Some of my favorite sights are nest-building Great Blue Herons. The female constructs the nest while the male gathers the materials. The system works well until the male brings back a stick that the female doesn’t like. She’ll drop it or won’t even accept it, and then the male will take off to find the perfect stick. Often during this time, the two birds will engage in bill tapping as part of their courtship.
Recently hatched birds are always a thrill to behold, and at the wetlands in springtime, fledglings are everywhere. Spring arrives as soon as mid-February, when we begin to see young herons, egrets, and other waterbirds. Get here early in the day: Sunrise flights are spectacular, as are the sunrises.
The 200-acre property is divided into four cells and a lake separated by berms. Cells 1 and 2, containing giant bulrush, soft-stem bulrush, and water lilies, mimic a deep-water marsh. Cells 3 and 4 are like a flag-pond marsh, with pickerelweed, arrowhead, and spike-rush.
At a depth of 29 feet, the lake is deep by Florida standards. It’s where you will find the biggest alligators. — Ivan Green
Ivan Green is a Florida Master Naturalist and a wildlife photographer. He birds the wetlands nearly year-round.
Directions
The Viera Wetlands are part of a water-reclamation facility in eastern Florida. From north- or southbound I-95, take exit 191 and head west on N. Wickham Rd. Continue west through the traffic circle at Lake Andrew Dr., go 1.75 miles, and make a slight left onto Charlie Corbeil Way. Go 0.25 miles to the entrance and follow the road to the parking lot.
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At a Glance
Click on the coordinates below to view location:
28°13’42.91″N 80°45’37.69″W
Habitat
Constructed treatment wetlands divided into four cells of approximately 35 acres each, plus a central deep-water lake.
Terrain
Unpaved roadways atop 2.7 miles of berms divide the cells and lake. Facility remains open to walkers and bicyclists even when wet conditions close roads to vehicles. Road surfaces are primitive; wheelchair accessibility limited.
Birds
Resident: Mottled and Ring-necked Ducks, Pied-billed Grebe, King Rail, American Coot, Common Gallinule, Least Bittern, Limpkin, Sandhill Crane, Common Grackle, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Great Blue, Green, Little Blue, and Tricolored Herons, Cattle, Great, and Snowy Egrets, White and Glossy Ibises, Wood Stork, Red-shouldered Hawk. Winter and spring: Purple Gallinule, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Hooded Merganser, Killdeer, Wilson’s Snipe, Black Skimmer, American White Pelican, American Bittern, Peregrine Falcon, Belted Kingfisher, Northern Harrier. Vagrants: Masked Duck, Eurasian Wigeon, Mississippi Kite.
When to go
Year-round. Best December through March.
Amenities
Observation tower, information kiosks. Portable toilets near parking areas.
Access
County water-treatment facility. No fees. Open daily, February and March, 7-7; April through September, 6-8; October, 7-7; and November through January, 7-6.
Tips
Best viewing by car. Weather is cool to cold in winter and hot and humid in summer.
For more info
Viera Wetlands. General hotline: (321) 637-5521. Road hotline: (321) 255-4488.
Sites nearby
River Lakes Conservation Area, Moccasin Island Tract
West of wetlands at the end of 4 Mile Rd. 14,000 acres along St. Johns River. Wood Stork, Crested Caracara.
Click Ponds
North of wetlands. Two large settling ponds that attract wintering waterfowl. Great for shorebirds, especially after water draw-downs expose mudflats.