Turkey Creek Sanctuary
The Turkey Creek Sanctuary is a small nature reserve in the city of Palm Bay in Brevard County, Florida, and incorporates both salty hammock and sand pine ridge habitats. The sanctuary is part of the Brevard County program. It has 1.85 miles of boardwalk paths and 1.5 miles of jogging trails through native forest to Turkey Creek, an excellent site for seeing birds, turtles, manatees, alligators as well as other local wildlife; there is a canoe deck on the creek. The creek is an important breeding ground for both salt and fresh water fish. The Sanctuary is part of the East Florida section of the Great Florida Birding Trail.
The property was donated to the Florida Audubon Society and the city of Palm Bay in 1978, and fundraising to conserve the area began in 1981. By 1994 was under the protection of the voluntary management committee. The park is open daily, from 7am to sunset.
It occasionally is threatened by environmental concerns. Heavy rains in September 2014 caused partially treated wastewater to spill into Turkey Creek.
The Margaret Hames Nature Center was opened in 1992 and offers environmental education programs, including nature day camps.
