On the east side of the county there is an extensive hiking trail system through the Withlacoochee State Forest while Fort Cooper State Park, in Inverness, offers a shorter trail through a hardwood hammock that loops past a finger of Lake Holathlikaha. Other hiking trails include Flying Eagle Preserve and Potts Preserve which are wetter and offer a different variety of species.

On the west side of the county, nature trails within the St. Martin's Marsh Aquatic Preserve/State Buffer Reserve off Dixie Drive traverse through a number of habitats including coastal hammock, salt marsh, pond pine flatwoods and scrub.

Shore birds and sea birds can be observed from the Fort Island Gulf Beach and the Cross Florida Greenway (formerly the Cross Florida Barge Canal). If you prefer to sit in one place and watch, try the Fort Island Trail Park, or the Crystal River State Archaeological Site, where you can sit at the top of the shell midden.

Some Sample Sightings You May See In Citrus County:

Red-Cockaded Woodpecker - endangered: Tillis Hill area, Withlacoochee State Forest.

Herons, Egrets and Coots - Withlacoochee and Chassahowitzka Rivers.

Sandhill Cranes - Fort Cooper State Park, Lake Holathlikaha.

Scrub Jay - Potts Preserve and Twisted Oaks Golf Course.

Marion's Marsh Wren and Scott's Seaside Sparrow - St. Martin's Marsh Aquatic Preserve/State Buffer Reserve.

Ospreys, Bald Eagles, Pelicans, Cormorants - Fort Island Trail Park of Crystal River Archaeological Site.

Belted Kingfishers and Hawks - West Fort Island Trail.

American Oyster Catcher and Other Shore Birds - around the mud flats, oyster bars, and small islands off the Gulf coast.