I currently live in a highly developed area of Tampa, Florida and am a good 35 minutes away from any form of wilderness. So, what do I do when I feel like spotting some wildlife but don’t have the time to travel beyond South Tampa? I grab a camera and head to some of the urban parks in the area. These places are refuges for wildlife and great spots to observe a wide variety of animals.
Here are a few of my favorite photos I’ve taken at urban parks around South Tampa.
One evening, we spotted a couple of raccoons and a cat hanging out and hunting together. The cat got along with all the raccoons – the only aggressive behavior we saw was between two of the raccoons. It was quite the funny scene!
Shout-out to the staff at City of Tampa and other contributing agencies for maintaining South Tampa’s urban parks. Additionally, I want to take a moment to thank organizations like Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful, Tampa Bay Estuary Program, and Tampa Bay Watch for their restoration efforts with our local parks and bay. Y’all rock!
Have you ever experimented with urban wildlife photography? If so, what animals have you captured? Comment below or email me at emilykeenphotography@gmail.com.
Emily Keen Photography 