THE POND
Our pond covers about 1/3 of an acre. We built it ourselves from what started out as two very small overgrown farm ponds on the property when we purchased it. Now it has the appearance of a small lake and is a completely self sustaining ecosystem.
View of northeast portion of pond
Our pond covers about 1/3 of an acre. We built it ourselves from what started out as two very small overgrown farm ponds on the property when we purchased it. Now it has the appearance of a small lake and is a completely self sustaining ecosystem.
View of northeast portion of pond
We have the pond stocked with Large mouth bass, catfish. specks and bluegills. They feed themselves on the crayfish, minnows and bugs that exist in the pond. The deepest two area of the pond are 15-18' and 20-25. Right now because of the severe drought we have had here in Florida, it is down about 6-8'. we run the irrigation pump into it on the weekends just to put in fresh oxygen for the fish.
The Amount of wildlife that we get to the pond is never ending. Not counting the birds which include: robins, quail, doves, mockingbirds, meadowlarks, bluejays and cardinals.
view of the north/northwest of pond another view of the northeast corner of pond
Last spring we had a pair of wild ducks stay in the pond for a couple of months. Unfortunately something (we think a water maccasin that got in the pond) killed one of them and the lone one left and never returned.
We also have a Great Blue Heron that has been visiting since we started the pond, we have named him Henry.
We also have a Great Blue Heron that has been visiting since we started the pond, we have named him Henry.
Gertrude & Grady Henry Heron
We have raccoons, bobcats, otters and even a monthly visit from a Florida panther. They love to drink and bathe in the pond. We Built a bridge over the narrow part of the pond. That took us about 2 1/2 months from start to finish.
A view of the bridge (looking north)
This is our little sanctuary. Our favorite way to relax is to sit by the pond and enjoy seeing the wildlife. Can't wait to put our own ducks and geese in the pond Maybe even a Black Swan?
An exciting thing that has made all of this work towards keeping everything attractive to the wildlife is that we just became certified by the National Wildlife Federation as a
"Certified Wildlife Habitat"
We are now also a certified
"Florida Backyard Wildlife Habitat"
and a
Florida Friendly Yards and Neighborhood GOLD member
An exciting thing that has made all of this work towards keeping everything attractive to the wildlife is that we just became certified by the National Wildlife Federation as a
"Certified Wildlife Habitat"
We are now also a certified
"Florida Backyard Wildlife Habitat"
and a
Florida Friendly Yards and Neighborhood GOLD member
