John Chestnut Sr. Park - First Visit

10/23/2014 at 1:30 PM
Location:  John Chestnut Senior Park
Conditions:  81 degrees Fahrenheit; winds < 10mph; sunny 0% cloud cover

Pine warbler (Dendroica pinus). 

Ivy and Lindsey checking out the local flora.

Orchard spider (Leucauge sp.).

Boardwalk along Lake Tarpon.

Coontail (Ceratophyllum demersum) in Lake Tarpon.

American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis).

Difficult to see brown snake in the water.  Possibly a brown water snake (Nerodia taxispilota).

White peacock butterfly (Anartia jatrophae).

     Ivy, Lindsey, and I went to John Chestnut Sr. Park on Lake Tarpon.  We spent the day walking around the park and trying to identify as many species as we could.  The lake ecosystem was similar to that at Sawgrass Lake in that the emergent plants, like cattail, grew along the banks of the lake whereas submerged plants, like eelgrass and coontail, grew further from the bank but still in the shoreline zone.  An anhinga and several moorhens were located in the shoreline zone as well as the American alligator seen above.  There was also flowing water swamp ecosystem (where the brown water snake in the above photo was located) which was dominated by bald cypress, dollarweed, and fern species.  It's an awesome park, go check it out!