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Biscayne National Park (3)
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The Keys
The barrier islands in the park represent the northern limit of the famous Florida Keys. The word "key" is derived from the Spanish "cayo" or "small islet." One such key--Elliott Key--is shown below.
There are a total of 44 keys in the island. Another shot of the largest, Elliott Key, is shown below. These islands are covered by gumbo limbo, Jamaican dogwood, strangler fig, torchwood, and mahogany.
The park's barrier islands, such as Sands's Key, Elliot Key, Adams Key, and Old Rhode's Key, lie approximately 5-7 miles from mainland. They provide protection for the mainland coast and Biscayne Bay against the waves of the Atlantic. In the picture below the Atlantic side of Elliott Key is shown. Although the mangrove vegetation is coming back, the bare nature of many of the trees is testament to the awesome battering these islands took during Hurricane Andrew.
Caesar's Creek, just south of Elliott Key, provides a channel which leads from Biscayne Bay to the Atlantic Ocean.
Another shot of Caesar's Creek is shown below. The keys have quite a colorful history, having been frequented by rum runners, drug smugglers, and importers of illegal aliens.
Caesar's Creek is bounded by Elliott and Adams Keys on the north and Rubicon, Reid, and Rhodes Keys (shown below) on the south.
In the 1800's and early 1900's these islands were used by loggers of the mahogany trees, and growers of pineapples, key limes, tomatoes and grapefruit. Turtle hunters and sponge fisherman were also found here.
Adams Key is a small island just to the west of the extreme southern portion of Elliott Key. The area contains a boat landing and visitor's facilities such as a picnic area and a nature trail.
The island also contains a boat dock, shown below. Frequented by visitors now, the islands also show signs of habitation and visitation from Indians such as the Tequestas, as well.
Like the other keys, Adams Key was originally built up from coral reefs and is covered by vegetation including palm trees and, along the shore, the "island builder"--the black mangrove. These islands provided a setting for homes for the wealthy in the 1920's and 1930's, and some of the structures erected at that time still stand.
The Atlantic Ocean
The park border extends approximately 5 miles into the Atlantic Ocean beyond the barrier islands. A view back across this section toward Old Rhodes and Elliott Keys is shown below.
The waters of the Atlantic within the borders of the park contain the only living coral reefs in the continental United States. These reefs can be viewed by snorkeling or through the hulls of glass-bottom boats provided by park concessionaires.
Below is another view of the Atlantic side of Biscayne National Park.
However, the treacherous reefs around the islands have been responsible for more than 50 shipwrecks. These often occurred as ships attempted to follow the Gulf Stream to the north and wandered too close to the treacherous reefs.
The beautiful waters of the channel are shown below.
Vegetation
As might be expected the warm, moist Florida climate favors rich vegetation. Among the trees which can be found along the edge of the bay is the mangrove. These trees are instrumental in absorbing the force of hurricanes and other fierce storms as they pound the shoreline.
Mangrove trees are important to the aquatic and dry land parts of the park environment. They help build land by trapping silt and sand in their roots. The impenetrable thicket formed by mangrove roots provides cover for birds, fish, and other animals, and also provide nutrients to the water in the bay as falling leaves and other material they trap decomposes. Some of the islands around the bay are in fact nothing more than groves of mangrove trees with no land above water level.
The black mangrove is sometimes called the "walking tree" because of its unique appearance. J. J. Audubon called the black mangrove a "tree reversed."
Even the inlets and canals in the Convoy Point area are covered with vegetation.
The rich green colors of the vegetation along the bay provides a contrast to the deep blue colors of sky and water.
More vegetation growing along the waters is pictured here.
Additional pictures of the vegetation along the bay at Black Point are shown below.
Another tree frequently found growing in the park is the palm, symbol of Florida.
Subtropical plants of many varieties can be found in the park area.
Some additional examples of the varied vegetation found in the park are shown below.
Vegetation along the waterfront is pictured here.
References
- Landrum, L. Wayne. Biscayne: The Story Behind the Scenery. Las
Vegas, NV: KC Publications, 1990.
- National Geographic's Guide to the National Parks of the United States.
Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 1992.
- National Parks of North America. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic
Society, 1995.
- Our Inviting Eastern Parklands. Washington, DC: National Geographic
Society, 1994.
- Our National Parks. Pleasantville, N.Y.: Reader's Digest Association,
1989.
- The Sierra Club Guides to the National Parks: East and Middle West.
N.Y.: Stewart, Tabori, and Chang, 1996.
- Uruquart, Jennifer C. Biscayne: Subtropical Island Realm. In America'
Hidden Treasures: Exploring Our Little-Known National Parks. Washington,
DC: National Geographic Society, 1992.
- Williams, Winston. Florida's Fabulous Waterbirds. Tampa, FL: World
Publications, 1983.
- Wolverton, Ruther, and Wolverton, Walt. Thirteen National Parks with Room to Roam. Bedford, MA: Mills & Sanderson, Publishers, 1992.
Information about Biscayne National Park has been drawn from personal experience, data available in the park itself, and a number of other sources, including:
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