To be honest, the trip was born out of sheer panic. It was the weekend before Christmas and we needed one more gift for my father-in-law. As we’ve been trying more and more to give activities instead of items, I started Googling and Yelping and Tripadvisor-ing: things to do in Naples.
Naples, Florida is where my in-laws escape the coldest months of the Michigan winter and this year, we’d be there to hang out with them for a few weeks. Our thought was, let’s find something cool and reasonably inexpensive to do.
TripAdvisor had the win – Bird Gardens of Naples. Much like his son, my father-in-law has a natural curiosity about all things. He loves birds and has a sort of innate ability to spot and identify all manners of our winged friends. The man made hummingbirds appear in places I didn’t think hummingbirds could appear. He’d be the bird whisperer, but as I mentioned, they live in Michigan and living things don’t like to be there.
According to their website “The Bird Gardens of Naples is a non-profit organization whose sole concern is parrot welfare in captivity and conservation of wild parrots”. The organization is a 501c3 and the tours are free. Donations are encouraged. The tour description describes walking through a nature area and interacting with “100+ birds from around the world.” Perfect for a bird lover, right?
So, we made a donation, booked a tour and called it a Christmas present. And boy, am I glad we did.
Fast forward to the second week in January. It’s my 6th day in Florida. My body is adjusting to humidity in January. My mosquito bites have mosquito bites. We are rapidly approaching a place that Google maps refers to as the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.
I will pause here for a quick foray into the history of snakes in Florida. Well, the part of it that I know, which is that a bunch of rednecks bought pythons and then either they escaped or were released on purpose and now live in the Everglades and the surrounding areas. Like, big snakes. Like the snake in that meme about why we live where the air hurts our face.
So, I was not excited about going to a place called Corkscrew Swamp. To me that just sounds like, “the snakes’ house”.
As we got closer, though, the strip malls gave way to organic farms. While I claim city-girl status, something about farms relaxes me instantly. Perhaps the bulk of my childhood spent in Kentucky and Ohio has created a weird association with safety. (I’m not sure why, cause farms have snakes too.)
Nonetheless, the area was beautiful. And nestled between two of these farms was the Bird Gardens of Naples. It reminded me of a small family winery. There is a small outside reception area with handpainted signs and comfortable outdoor furniture and a fire pit circle. It is not immediately apparent that you’re anywhere near a swamp.
Our tour guide, Jake, introduced himself – and his dog – as he opened the gates. He gave us the rules and explained that many of the birds on the tour, while beautiful and unique in their own right, are not especially friendly. He reminded us that we should only feed unsalted nuts to the birds, if anything. Then he added – to file with my list of things that “adults should already know” – don’t put your finger in the cage.
The organization does arrange adoptions but the birds on the tour (and in the pictures below) are not adoptable for a variety of reasons. These are not the kind of birds that are going to give you a sweet peck. If you put your finger in the cage, you might lose it. These birds are being made comfortable and kept safe for the rest of their lives – which can be upwards of 60 years.
The tour was relaxed and informative. It was meandering in the way that haunted houses are meandering – I don’t think we covered a ton of square feet, but the path wound among the plants and the bird houses and provided attendees ample opportunity to see everything there is to see.
And hear. These birds are loud. Like, middle school girls at a boy band concert loud. Some birds say words they’ve learned, others have no interest in talking to us but instead are warning their brethren of the invading humans with unsalted nuts.
There is a lot to see. In addition to the rescued parrots, there is a turtle, some ducks, peacocks and chickens. You don’t notice the chickens at first, though you do hear them. Then, as you move through the tour, they begin to follow the group, ready to scavenge for any unsalted nuts dropped and left behind.
And they’re kinda stealthy. I swear, when I turned around, one of them put his wings behind his back, looked to the sky and whistled an innocuous tune. Then, I walked a hundred yards ahead only to turn around and have him RIGHT BEHIND ME. I know chickens don’t seem scary, but I had exposed ankles and my mind on violent birds. I decided to hide behind my spouse.
But I digress.
The animals seem to live in relative harmony. According to our tour guide, the peacocks make their nests on top of the parrot cages so that if a predator approaches, the parrots will make noise and the peacocks can get away. The ducks and the turtle share a cage, a concept which as we speak is being developed into a Chuck Lorre comedy.
Each animal has an origin story. Our tour guide recounted how each animal came to be at the refuge, unique characteristics of all the different species and why each bird looks or sounds the way it does. I don’t remember any it, if I’m being honest. What I do remember is the sheer beauty of these birds and my impression that many of them came to the refuge because humans intervened in their lives in a less-than-ideal way.
On the other hand, at the end of the tour, the participants get to meet some very friendly pet birds, who let us pet them, climbed up on human arms and did not swallow any fingers. Seemingly, these birds are better off for the humans in their life.
There may or may not be an overarching lesson here, though we certainly came away with an even stronger desire to be well-informed and responsible pet owners, should we ever decide to graduate from house plants. And more than that, I felt gratitude for the owner of the refuge for stepping in to provide a retirement home for these birds and for the time we got to hang out with them.
Gorgeous day at the Bird Gardens of Naples 
Attendees are allowed to feed the birds unsalted nuts. 
What is in a name? 
Chickens chasing nuts. 
Macaw aviary 
Local peacock 
Tourgoers in the macaw aviary 
Duck and turtle version of Three’s Company 
Plants competing for attention. 
Pretending that they’re not following me.
Do yourself a favor when you’re in the area and check out the Bird Gardens of Naples. Tours are by appointment only, and can be booked on their website at https://birdgardensofnaples.org.