Indian River Lagoon
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Summary Information |
Overviews and Highlights |
Maps
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Summary Information
| Year Established: |
1990 |
| Location: |
Florida |
| Area of Watershed: |
3,575 square kilometers |
Priority
Management
Issues: |
human population growth
habitat loss/alteration
fisheries loss/decline
species loss/decline
freshwater inflow
|  |
nutrients
sedimentation
conventional pollutants
introduced/pest species
toxics
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Major
Habitat
Types: |
submerged aquatic vegetation (seagrass and macroalgae)
barrier islands/sand bars
lagoon/shallow open water
shellfish growing areas
beach/dune (bare and vegetated)
sand/mud/salt flats
salt/brackish marsh
| |
freshwater marsh (non-tidal)
mangrove
forested wetland
scrub/shrub
non-wetland forest
ocean inlets
mosquito impoundments
|
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| Federally Endangered or Threatened Species: |
mammals:
West Indian manatee
southeastern beach mouse
birds:
Bachman's warbler
bald eagle
Florida scrub jay
Kirtland's warbler
peregrine falcon
piping plover
red-cockaded woodpecker
roseate tern
snail kite
wood stork
| |
reptiles:
American alligator
Atlantic hawksbill turtle
Atlantic green sea turtle
Atlantic ridley sea turtle
Atlantic salt marsh snake
eastern indigo snake
leatherback sea turtle
loggerhead sea turtle
fish
shortnose sturgeon
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Overviews and Highlights
Excessive amounts of stormwater runoff deposit nutrients and sediment in the Indian River
Lagoon. These impact bottom-dwelling organisms, foster algae overgrowth, and smother
seagrasses, which are critical to the health of the estuary. To help keep sand, leaves, and litter out
of the lagoon, the Indian River NEP built a concrete sediment trap - called a 'baffle box" - in a
drainage system serving a developed section of the shoreline. This "baffle box" has captured
approximately four tons of sediment since its installation in 1992. As a result, the use of this
simple and relatively inexpensive technology is being expanded throughout the lagoon.
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Maps
Select a map.
 Local Maps
Indian River Lagoon Study Area
(area where the program is concentrating its efforts)
Indian River Lagoon Watershed
(estuarine and fluvial drainage areas for the estuary)
Regional Maps- Southeast
Locations of Estuaries in the NEP
Watersheds of Estuaries in the NEP
Study Areas of Estuaries in the NEP
National Maps
Locations of Estuaries in the NEP
Watersheds of Estuaries in the NEP
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