Caladesi Island

10/22/15
Weather 85 degrees, breezy

This trip was amazing!
It was a little pricey considering we had to pay $8 to get into honeymoon island and another $15 for ferry tickets but it was more than worth it.
The ferry ride was great, the water looked so clear and nice and the wind was comfortable.
Upon arriving at Caladesi I noticed just how secluded it was. There were maybe 12 or 13 people that I saw on the whole island, it was great!
Some of the most noticeable vegetation was the Prickly Pears. Having some knowledge in the reptile pet trade I guessed that gopher tortoises may eat the prickly pears and it turns out I was right. I even took one of the fruits and ate it. The pear was pretty tasty. It is a source of food and water for the native tortoises.
It was very obvious management performed prescribed burning considering all the burn marks that were visible on trees.
This trip was great and I would certainly return for fun.

Egmont Key - Group Project

Temp: 72
Weather: Beautiful with few clouds

Egmont Key State Park
1.6 miles long
less than 1/2 mile wide
400 acres
Established 1974

Majority of the island is sectioned off as a National Wildlife Sanctuary, mainly for the migrating birds.

Egmont Key Beach

The island was also utilized as a camp for Seminole prisoners during the Spanish American War.

During this visit (our second) it was so much more pleasurable to visit the island. We were also to observe many more species since they were out and about roaming the island. We were also able to interview the park ranger on this trip, Tom.

He let us know that the park's biggest threat is erosion. Human interaction is not a problem because all of the visitors know to keep the state park clean and it is less accessible than most state parks. Also, over 1800 keystone species gopher tortoises call this lovely island home! 

The gopher tortoises make burrows as their home and shelter that other creatures on the island depend on during storms and fires to stay safe making them a keystone species. 

The island has some different ecosystems but the main ones are beach forest ecosystem and high pine grasslands as well as wetlands. The ecosystems change as the elevation changes.

I loved Egmont key and I can't wait to present our adventure to the class!

Scavenger Hunt - First trip 8/20/15

Temperature: 87 degrees F
Minimal cloud coverage




Objective: To become aware and familiar with the species present on campus at Clearwater SPC by completing a group scavenger hunt.

We completed the lecture on various types of plants such as angiosperms and gymnosperms, with time remaining of class we split into several groups. An extra credit assignment was offered in the form of a scavenger hunt. My group consisted of Lauren, Sarah, Sara (me), Clark and Mike.

Some items we needed to find were humans and wildlife sharing their environment, below is a picture of Lauren and Sarah loving nature.

There was other items we needed to locate on campus such as how humans have altered their environment, below is a picture of Lauren and Sarah in the south parking lot on campus. 

The scavenger hunt really help broaden my understanding of the habitats we live in here in Pinellas County 

Project Trip- Egmont Key 11/11/15

Temperature: 75 degrees F
Partly cloudy, slight breeze present

Objective: To visit our park for the 2nd time and observe additional animals and habitats that are present on the island.

History: Egmont Key was surveyed by Spanish explores in 1757. In 1761 the English named the island for the Earl of Egmont. For decades it was passed off between Spain and England, eventually the United States gain ownership in 1827. In 1850 the island became an internment came for captured Seminole Indians. In 1887, the island was used as a quarantine station during a yellow fever outbreak in Key West.


Trip: With the weather being much more tolerable there was clearly more life on the island than our original visits. In our first visit there was no reptiles, no gopher tortoises and almost no birds present. On this trip the island was literally crawling with gopher tortoises. The park ranger stated there is 1,800 + gopher tortoises on the island. They are the second most abundant animal next to the laughing gulls.

Gopher tortoise is a key stone species on the island. They are adapted to this habitat due to their ability to create burrows which help them escape a fire. 

There are invasive species on the island one very common one is Air Potato, and Brazilian Pepper. 

Over all, there was more animals available for observation within the habitats on the island. 

Hammock Park 11/19/15

Temperature: 81 degrees F
Overcast with 76% humidity

Objective: Observe a hammock habitat within Pinellas County

History: The park is over 90 acres, it is one of the oldest parks in Pinellas County. The park got its named based off the ecosystem present "Hammock".

When entering the main trail there was black mangroves present within the water way, mangroves would only be present if there is salt water, therefore the canal would need to be brackish water. In the canal there was a paid of mallard ducks out for a swim.

As we continue on the trail it is clear the park is a mesic park, it was not flooded and it was not dry. With such a dense cannopy it can be dificult for light to reach plants in the understory. Below is a picture of a fern going in an Oak tree, this is called an epiphite, it is not harming the tree.

There was presence of fungi on sever of the fallen trees, fungi and bacteria are the main decomposers in a hammock ecosystem.

As large trees fall it creates an opening that allows light into the under story. This allows other plants to grow in its place, this process is known as gap succession.

It was interesting seeing the various adaptations one would need to survive in this habitat.

Hammock Park
November 19, 2015
Dunedin, Florida

This is our final class field trip and oh how I will miss the hidden treasures, in our own backyards, that only Dr. G can introduce and pass on her excitement for the outdoors.  The weather was about 80 degrees, quite muggy and humid.  This park, again, takes me back to my elementary school days running around all over this park (which was more a recreational/summer camp park with a BMX track with jumps over the water and all).  The ecosystem observed was obviously hammock, with watershed areas.  The creek had brackish water and ultimately leads out to St. Joseph Sound; however while neither waterway is palatable, one suspects the creek is quite polluted.  Plants that were abundant were elephant ears, oak trees and citrus trees (which were evidence of prior fauna many moons ago.

NURSERY LOG

Hammock Park, Florida

On Thursday November 19th I visited Hammock Park in Dunedin Florida.  It was 79° outside but it felt more like 85°. The humidity on this day was unbearable, I literally was sweating in place. Hammock park was purchased in 1965. Most of the park is a Low Hammock ecosystem. As we begin our journey into the park I see a barrel for Air Potatoes. These are a highly invasive species and the park encourages you to throw them away into these garbage cans. There are Cabbage palms present in the park, these also happen to be the state tree. As I venture further into the park the canopy becomes more dense and I can see that this is a low light ecosystem.

The trees here are all pretty big as they try to leach the light. Some of the trees in this park are over 100 years old. There is a lot of epiphytes present. Fungus is easy to find here since the ecosystem relies on it. Fire would not be good for this ecosystem. As I turn around to start my walk back to my car I almost step on a Black Racer. These stakes are common in Florida and not venomous. Resurrection ferns are present as well. They look like they are dormant and waiting for water on this day.

Hammock Park

19 November 2015

Weather: 79° F, all clouds in sky, very very humid

Why are we here? To observe a hammock, and determine the types of species that live here, as well as take note of how the ecosystem works to decompose the material in the environment.

Observations: Grassy, with rich soil. Many leaves on ground. Brackish water in river because their are black mangrove pneumatophores present. There are some nurse logs from fallen trees that have resurrection ferns on them. These logs use secondary succession which allows different species to take over and slowly decompose them, placing the nutrients back into the environment. The hammock we were in was mesic because it had high diversity. The canopy layers we observed were all of them- the emergent was somewhat from the taller palm trees. We observed species like the air potato, which is an invasive species that the park has trash cans placed around the trails for you to throw them away, as well as wild coffee, and a tree with a fungal infection. We also saw many bromeliads high in the trees, which are examples of epiphytes. The fungus' that were present on some of the nursery logs were important in order to breakdown items in the detrital for web. When a tree falls down, this is an example of gap succession, which allows light into the understory layer as well as it makes space for other plants to grow. As we went slightly up in elevation, we noticed more pines, less soil, tortuous burrows, and more sand. This was because there was less of a canopy which provided the shade for the organic material to make a ground layer. As we went back down in elevation, we noticed lots a oaks as well as Spanish moss growing on it. We also saw vines. These are both more examples of epiphytes. Along the river we noticed elephant ears, ear pod trees, giant leather ferns, a Great Egret (black feet), as well as papyrus growing on the river.

Overall, the hammock has been the most interesting ecosystem we have visited so far, because it has a great amount of diversity in species as well as unpredictable plants and animals you might see.

Hammock Park

11/19/15
Weather: 81 degrees and cloudy
Goal: to study hammock environments

Hammock park is about 90 acres of mixed harwood forests and hammocks. It was purchased by the county in 1965.

I was the first to arrive at the park so I took a moment to enjoy the swing-set they have there. After more students began to arrive we began to go over our goals for the trip. There were many dead trees with fungus's and resurrection ferns. These dead trees allowed for new life to grow. The fungus's rooted themselves in the decaying wood and began to eat away at the minerals within. resurrection ferns took light when able to allow growth and when light was scarce then they "played" dead.  We couldn't identify the mushrooms but they were about the size of a dinner plate with a pale beige coloration. It would make sense to find them here because there were many dead and dying trees for them to live and feed off of.

Hammock Park

Temp: 79F
Humidity: 80%
Wind: 8mph

Hammock Park was purchased by the county in 1965, with some tress over 100 years old, and stretches roughly 90acres. Our goal at the park was to look at hammock environments, before entering the park we discussed how hardwoods are angiosperms.

We also went over some invasive species, including the air potato. This species spreads like wildfire, so the park holds an event every January for harvesting it, and also provides trash bins around the park to help reduce the spreading.

We distinguished the park to be mesic, mesic = moist. They are more diverse than xeric hammocks, and grow some types of fruit that attracts birds. We also witnessed gap succession.

In the park we were able to observe:

Poison ivy
Cabbage palms
Beauty berry
Resurrection fern
Spanish moss
Wild blossom apple
Ferns
Walnut trees
Slash pines
Gopher tortoise
Giant leather ferns
Catsclaw

Hammock park was a nice, simple park that I really enjoyed.

Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park

Welcome to Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park this where you can see West Indian manatees every day of the year from the park's underwater observatory in the main spring. The park showcases native Florida wildlife, including manatees, black bears, bobcats, white-tailed deer, American alligators, American crocodiles, and river otters. As well there are Manatee programs are offered three times daily.

There are over 26 Ecosystems is the park, this due to the variety of many species of animals and mammals, plant and trees. Every Animal lives in a different environment than others, which means a different ecosystems. As I took a boat from the state park down a creek known as Pepper’s Creek which brackish water with lots of canopy cover and plenty of wild life alligator’s lots of turtles and plentiful and beautiful ducks

Pepper’s Creek leads to the entrance to the park and the spring. The main springs of the Homosassa Springs complex emerge from a steep-sided rectangular basin that measures about 90 feet by 50 feet and has a maximum depth of about 35 feet.

Overhanging ledges extend out along the west and southwest walls. The bottom of the basin is very uneven and irregular due to collapsed boulders that line the floor. Springs and their associated spring runs are a unique class of aquatic ecosystems. Since their principal water source is groundwater, many springs have water that is crystal clear, yet rich with dissolved nutrients and gases. Spring ecosystems have been the focus of some notable ecological studies, due to their diverse flora and fauna, and because their stable environmental characteristics generate natural controlled settings suitable for general ecological research. As I do not want to tell you about all the Ecosystems as this is my main State Park project .This is a Beautiful Park and well worth going to see .I spend all day there on 3 occasions Lots to see.