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Wildlife in Dry Tortugas National Park

Here’s what naturalists are spotting in Dry Tortugas right now - pulled live from recent research-grade observations. Browse by group, explore the map, and identify what you find with Huck.

4,464
recent observations
30
species listed
15
birds
12
other
2
plants

Naturalists have logged 4,464 research-grade observations across the 30 most-recorded species in Dry Tortugas. The most frequently seen is the Magnificent Frigatebird, with 544 recorded sightings.

Birds account for the largest share of what gets recorded there (15 of the species listed here), followed by other (12).

Rarer finds confirmed in Dry Tortugas include Masked Booby and Brown Booby - uncommon enough that a sighting is worth logging.

Masked BoobyBrown Booby
🖨️ Printable wildlife checklist

Most-observed species in Dry Tortugas

Magnificent Frigatebird
Fregata magnificens
544 observations
Sooty Tern
Onychoprion fuscatus
397 observations
Brown Noddy
Anous stolidus
324 observations
Caribbean Land Hermit Crab
Coenobita clypeatus
265 observations · iNaturalist
Ruddy Turnstone
Arenaria interpres
233 observations
Gray Snapper
Lutjanus griseus
229 observations
Brown Pelican
Pelecanus occidentalis
192 observations
Atlantic Sergeant Major
Abudefduf saxatilis
148 observations
Masked Booby
Sula dactylatra
135 observations
Brown Anole
Anolis sagrei
128 observations
Western Cattle-Egret
Ardea ibis
121 observations · iNaturalist
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
119 observations
Purple Sea Fan
Gorgonia ventalina
116 observations · iNaturalist
Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximus
115 observations
Palm Warbler
Setophaga palmarum
112 observations
Wild Poinsettia
Euphorbia cyathophora
111 observations · iNaturalist
Bridled Tern
Onychoprion anaethetus
109 observations · iNaturalist
Great Barracuda
Sphyraena barracuda
100 observations
Knobby Brain Coral
Pseudodiploria clivosa
95 observations · iNaturalist
Slippery Dick
Halichoeres bivittatus
94 observations
Sandwich Tern
Thalasseus sandvicensis
94 observations
Atlantic Blue Tang
Acanthurus coeruleus
83 observations
Bluestriped Grunt
Haemulon sciurus
82 observations
Hooded Warbler
Setophaga citrina
82 observations
Beaugregory
Stegastes leucostictus
81 observations
Brown Booby
Sula leucogaster
79 observations
Caribbean Bluehead Wrasse
Thalassoma bifasciatum
74 observations
American Redstart
Setophaga ruticilla
71 observations
Green Buttonwood
Conocarpus erectus
66 observations · iNaturalist
Striped Parrotfish
Scarus iseri
65 observations

Built from recent research-grade iNaturalist observations. Identifications are community-sourced and may occasionally be wrong, and the ranking reflects where people record and photograph wildlife, so a species seen often here is not necessarily rare elsewhere. Some plants and animals are only out in certain seasons. Treat this as a lively snapshot of what people are finding, not a formal checklist.

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