BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – The Enchanted Forest Sanctuary, located in the southern portion of Titusville, is helping to protect and preserve Florida's natural habitat.
It features eight hiking trails that offer sounds from all kinds of birds, including white-eyed vireo, blue-gray gnatcatchers, cardinals and mockingbirds.
The sanctuary's Environmentally Endangered Lands program focuses on protecting wildlife and preserving the land.
"We're not just putting up a fence and leaving it because a lot's changed over years and years and years of development; it changes the landscape," education center coordinator Patricia Rendon said. "When we're able to preserve these places, we see more diversity; we see healthier wildlife as a result of that."
The program was established in 1990 throughout Brevard County to protect 22 different habitats.
"Here at the Enchanted Forest, we have eight different habitats represented here. We have a lot of diversity in our own backyard," Rendon said.
The almost 500-acre sanctuary is home to wildlife such as white-tailed deer, bobcats, indigo snakes, armadillos, and gopher tortoises, among other animals.
"We have so many different kinds of animals and plants intersecting. Here specifically, we have subtropical plants and temperate plants kind of meeting and co-existing and we really don't see that in a lot of places," Rendon said.
On Saturday, Enchanted Forest Sanctuary will be holding a Creepy Crawly Day. Some of the animals that will be brought for the public to see will be coral snakes, which are known to be venomous, some bats and reptiles, such as alligators. The event will also include some chocolate-covered insects for the public to taste.
"We're a little behind the curve here, I think, because two-thirds of the world's humans incorporate insects into their daily diets," Rendon said about the common treats eaten in other countries.
The Creepy Crawly Day event is free and takes place Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.