Brooker Creek Park.
November 12th, 2015.

Temperature: 86 degrees F.
Sunrise-sunset: 6:53-5:40.
Precipitation: 0%.
Humidity: 58%
Cloud coverage: Low.

Brooker Creek is the largest park in Pinellas County. It was originally purchased by the county in 1985. Now the park is partially owned by SWFWMD (Southwest Florida Water Management District).

Shortly after venturing onto the first trail we came across a rather interesting split in the ecosystems present. To our right was a hammock.

While on our left was a swampy area caused by a decrease in elevation.

Shortly after, on the right side of the trail, we came to an area where 4 of the 5 forest layers were present. 

Here the forest has a Canopy, an Understory, a Shrub layer, and a Ground layer.

Further into the park the terrain shifted into a primarily swampy area dominated by cypress trees. On these cypress trees you can see the high-water line. This indicates maximum height of the flood water in this area.

Cypress trees are especially suited for swampy environments because of their Knees. These knees act much like the red mangroves prop roots. Cypress knees spread out from the tree anchoring it in the heavily saturated soil of the swamp. These trees can also provide a stable environment for Epiphytic plants like the resurrection fern.

Soon we found ourselves in a transition zone dominated by Saw Palmetto and viney plants.

This transition led to a High Pine Flatland. Flatlands require fire to maintain a healthy ecosystem. In Brooker Creek, these areas have prescribed fires every 5-10 years. Many of the pines in this area are around the same size, suggesting that the last prescribed burn covered the entire area. The trees height and the density of Saw Palmetto suggest that the last burn was some time ago.

in some areas the pines have blackened bark. This is evidence of past fires that these trees survived.

Toward the end of our hike we entered a part of the trail known for its low elevation and almost constant flooding.

Here we found out who in our group was truly prepared. Many shoes were nearly lost and many others came out resembling mud pies.

This was the perfect end to a tour of such a beautifully diverse set of ecosystems. Brooker Creek is definitely on my list of parks in need of a second visit (with better shoes next time).