Taylor Park - Chosen park

Taylor Park
Largo, Fl

     Taylor park is a park located in Largo, Fl that has a nice trail all the way around a large lake along with a couple shelters to be used for group parties. This park could be characterized as a lake ecosystem due to the large lake in the center of the park. The most productive part of the lake is the shoreline as there is a lot of activity there. There are many plants and animals that spend the majority of their time on the shoreline. Many fish will spend their time there to feed and hide from other predators. While no fish were observed on this trip, there were signs posted to inform fisherman about what type of fish are living in the lake. There were also a lot of types of insects along the shoreline that interacted with the plants. Some of these insects included butterflies that are important for fertilizing plants and dragonflies were also present.
     There were many types of birds along the shoreline of the lake. These birds are known to feed on grubs in the soil of the lake shoreline. They would wade around and poke at the ground searching for food. Some birds include: white ibises, wood stork, ducks, and anhingas. Turtles and alligators could also be seen in the lake. This is a typical environment for all of these animals as the freshwater lake provides many food options and shelter for all of these animals.

This is a wood stork which is an endangered bird. They are native to Florida and can be seen in similar environments. 

All around the park were Slash Pines. The Slash Pines drop their needles and this allows for a more acidic soil allowing the pines to grow better in that soil. 

Part of the shoreline along a more shallow part of the lake. These trees are Bald Cypress and they are typical tress for this environment. They need a lot of water in order to maintain their health. The 'knees' act as pneumatophores which allow for oxygen exchange when the water levels get too high. 

A turtle sunning in the shallow water. 

White ibises can be seen grazing along the shoreline eating various grubs in the soil. 

White Peacock butterflies spend time on the plants along the lake shoreline, pollinating the plants.

Little blue heron spending time in the shallow water. 

An unknown plant that was found along the shoreline of the lake. 

Great blue heron along the lake shoreline. They spend time looking for food along the shoreline and in the shallow parts of the lake. 

Anhinga. This bird spends time fishing. They do not have oils on their wings which allow for the waterproofing and after diving or spending time in the water they need to dry their wings before they can fly. 

American alligator. These animals are characteristic of Florida freshwater environments. They eat birds and fish in the lake. 

An Anhinga drying its wings after spending time in the water.