Last week our class visited Sawgrass Lake in St. Petersburg. We were able to learn about the different types of lakes and ponds. Lakes are typically 10 acres or more while ponds are less than 10 acres. Sawgrass Lake is a drainage lake, which we learned has an outward flow for the water to exit. This causes the lake to have higher oxygen and water infusion, and allows for shorter residence for the lake's water. Also, I learned about the different characterizations of lakes, being oligotrophic, mesotrophic or eutrophic. This particular lake is mesotrophic, since there is a fair amount of vegetation here as well as high diversity of organisms. Sawgrass Lake is home to many different animal, fish and plant species we were able to observe. I was excited to see one of the youngest and smallest alligators I have seen in person as well as one of the largest, swimming around in the lake! There were multiple moorehens to observe which displayed some interesting behaviors, squawking and fighting each other. There were caterpillars, turtles and even a hawk. For plant life, we observed some emergent vegetation within the water, as well as submerged and floating vegetation. We were able to clearly see which categories of this vegetation survive successfully in which zones, between the shoreline, euphotic and benthic zones. In the canopy, we saw cypress, maple, duck potato, and many leather ferns. This ecosystem has been effected negatively in the past by massive amounts of lead leakage from a nearby shooting range, but seemed to be on the uprise in its condition. The ph level when tested was 6-7, making this a livable environment for life in and around the water. The salinity tested at 0%, showing us this is a fresh water source. Below are the pictures I took :)

 Look closely and you'll see the Gar ^

 And even closer, you'll see a gopher tortoise ^

This is my alligator friend ^