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Manager Contact Information
E-mail: conservationcollier@colliercountyfl.gov
Phone: (239) 252-2961

Preserve Size: 96.6 acres

Date Acquired:  The first 62.98 acres were purchased in December 2008, followed by additional parcels in 2010, 2023, and 2024.

Cost of Acquisition: $5,804,800

Public Access Status: Open. 1.5 miles of free hiking trails available to visitors open dawn to dusk, 7 days a week. Parking available at the trailhead. There is a shaded picnic area built by a local Eagle Scout as well as several benches along the trail. There are no bathroom facilities on site. Pack in/pack out any trash. 

Plants and Wildlife: 

The 96.6-acre preserve is a combination of Cabbage Palm, Inland Ponds and Sloughs, Mixed Wetland Hardwoods, Cypress, Pine Flatwoods, Mixed Wetland Forests and Freshwater Marsh.  The preserve also contains an outstanding example of pop ash swamps and several wetlands.  One hundred sixty-two vascular plant species were recorded on the preserve and 36 (22%) of these plants are indicated as not native to our area (Appendix 2).  All invasive exotic plants will require removal and maintenance.  The canopy is dominated by slash pine trees (Pinus elliottii), cabbage palms (Sabal palmetto), scattered cypress (Taxodium ascendens) in the upland areas.  Willow (Saliz caroliniana), pop ash (Fraximus caroliniana) and red maple (Acer rubrum) can be found in the wetland areas.  The midstory contains areas of ragweed (Ambrosia sp.), dogfennel (Eupatorium capillifolium), sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense), saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) and myrsine (Rapanea punctata).  The groundcover is a combination of ferns such as bracken fern (Pteridnum aquilimum), swamp fern (Blechmaum serrulatum), chain fern (Woodwardia virginica), alligator flag (Thalia geniculata) and sagittaria (Sagittaria lancifolia), amongst other groundcovers common in Pine/Cabbage Palm communities and freshwater marsh communities.  Ephiphytes and vines have been observed throughout the preserve.  Listed plant species include common wild pine (Tillandsia fasciulata), hand fern (Ophioglossum palmatum) and reflexed (inflated) wild pine (Tillandsia balbisiana).

Mammal species known to occur or individuals and/or evidence of activity directly observed within the preserve include the white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Florida black bear (Ursus americanus floridanus), and wild feral hogs (Sus scrofa), and  Florida panther (Puma concolor). There is a wildlife underpass under Immokalee Road north of the preserve that provides habitat connectivity through the Twin Eagles subdivision to over 60,000 acres of conservation lands, including state-owned lands, Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp and the Corkscrew Ecosystem Lands.  

Wildlife monitoring photos taken at the River's Road Preserve courtesy of the F-Stop Foundation.

Reason for Acquisition: The Rivers Road Preserve was acquired to protect natural lands along a developing corridor in Collier County - Immokalee Road. Additionally, the preserve was intended to provide ecosystem services such as the protection of water resources, flood control, maintenance of nutrient cycles, preservation of biological diversity, carbon sequestration, and recreational/educational opportunities for citizens and visitors.

Printed Materials:
 River's Road Preserve Final Management Plan