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Florida is surrounded on three sides by bodies of water: the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Florida Bay to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. In addition to its coastal habitats, Florida has a variety of wetland habitats, such as marshland, swampland, lakes, springs, and rivers. Florida's largest river is the St. Johns River.
The environment of Florida in the United States yields an array of land and marine life in a mild subtropical climate. This environment has drawn millions of people to settle in the once rural state over the last hundred years. Florida's population increases by about 1,000 residents each day. [1]
Alaska is the most biodiverse state with 15 ecoregions across three biomes in the same realm. California comes in a close second with 13 ecoregions across four biomes in the same realm. By contrast, Rhode Island is the least biodiverse with just one ecoregion—the Northeastern coastal forests —encompassing the entire state.
The South Florida rocklands ecoregion, in the tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome, occurs in southern Florida and the Florida Keys in the United States, where they would naturally cover an area of 2,100 km 2 (810 sq mi).
The Florida mangroves ecoregion, of the mangrove forest biome, comprise an ecosystem along the coasts of the Florida peninsula, and the Florida Keys.Four major species of mangrove populate the region: red mangrove, black mangrove, white mangrove, and the buttonwood.
More than 800 square miles (2,100 km 2) of Florida Bay is protected by Everglades National Park, representing the largest body of water in the park boundaries. [73] There are approximately one hundred keys in Florida Bay, many of which are mangrove forests. [74] Larger islands may be taken over by hardwood hammocks.
Turkey oak near Palm Bay, Florida. On the Gulf coastal plain, maritime forest consists of a mosaic of forests and shrublands on barrier islands and strands. It occurs in sheltered areas behind coastal dunes and grasslands.
In a 2015 study by the United States Geological Survey, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the University of Florida, 95 adult marsh rabbits were released and tracked in areas known to have invasive python populations. 11 months later, it was found that 77% of the rabbits that fell victim to predation, was due to pythons. [171]