{"content":[{"text":"On Our Pond \n The Ecological Communities of Hillsborough County: Open Water","bbox":{"left":0.059216,"top":0.026042,"width":0.7152449999999999,"height":0.05814200000000001}},{"text":"page 2","bbox":{"left":0.867843,"top":0.028561,"width":0.06031399999999998,"height":0.020818}},{"text":"Taken from the Delaney Creek Watershed Management Plan \n “Nothing but water,” This phrase may seem fitting \n when looking over an open area on our ponds or \n lakes, but as Adopt-A-Pond groups are well aware, \n there is usually more than meets the eye. The truth \n is, that open area of water can be a healthy \n ecological community and a vital habitat for many \n species. But because of this community’s varied \n nature, it’s harder to classify than some of the \n others we have discussed. \n This ecological type includes natural lakes, ponds \n and seasonal water features that commonly occur in \n almost all of the systems we’ve discussed \n previously. Their size can vary from a few hundred \n square feet to several hundred acres. Vegetation on \n the immediate edge of the system will vary with the \n type of community in which the open water is found. But in the open water itself numerous aquatic plants can \n be found including waterlilies, pondweeds, spikerushes, lemon bacopa, and bladderworts. Mammals found in \n this habitat are generally the same as those found in adjacent habitats. They use the open water for drinking or \n as an area to breed. Shorebirds, long-legged waders, gulls, and terns are also typical of these areas. Reptiles can \n include watersnakes, numerous species of turtles and the American alligator. This habitat also serves as an \n important area in the life cycle of many amphibians such as frogs, toads and salamanders. Unfortunately it is \n easy to confuse this living system with a dead body of water. It is important to remember that a healthy pond \n needs plants and may incorporate several community types.","bbox":{"left":0.059216,"top":0.099715,"width":0.880315,"height":0.43423900000000004}},{"text":"The Water Scorpion—AAAHHHHHH! \n By Kelly Holland \n Giant claws reach down from above and grab you. Immediately you are \n stuck with a large needle and your bodily fluids are drained from you. \n Alien invasion? Nightmare? It is if you’re a small fish, tadpole or other \n tasty morsel in the open water habitat of a pond or lake. The aptly named \n water scorpion is always on the prowl for a good meal. Water scorpions in \n Florida look more like their terrestrial cousins, the walking sticks, but other \n species more resemble scorpions. Florida’s bugs are about two inches long \n and brownish in color with long spindly legs and front claws. They have \n two long thin tubes that function as snorkels projecting from the rear of the \n abdomen. These tubes allow the animal to hang head down from the \n surface and grab unsuspecting prey with its long claws, snatching a single \n victim without the rest of the school suspecting anything. Once the prey is \n caught, it is injected with a combination of fluids that anaesthetize the area \n of the wound and begin the digestive process. This liquefies the insides of \n the prey and allows it to be sucked out through the bug’s piercing beak. \n This bug can also rub its front legs together like a cricket to make a sound \n and can fly if need be. Like many other aquatic insects, they only fly at \n night and then only for mating purposes or to find another pond when the \n one they are living in is drying out. Be careful if you find one of these guys in your pond. They are known to \n play “possum” in a net, only to come to life in the captor’s hand and inflict a stabbing bite. So with this \n “scorpion” it is not the tail you have to watch out for!","bbox":{"left":0.059216,"top":0.556345,"width":0.8542,"height":0.414276}}],"images_bbox":[{"left":0.059216,"top":0.1,"width":0.458823,"height":0.285455},{"left":0.67098,"top":0.567576,"width":0.28,"height":0.335758}],"images_bbox_not_text_overlap":[{"left":0.059216,"top":0.1,"width":0.458823,"height":0.285455},{"left":0.67098,"top":0.567576,"width":0.28,"height":0.335758}]}