Northwest Florida is home to many natural resource wonders. One such wonder is the series of coastal dune lakes that dot the coast of the panhandle.
A lake is considered a coastal dune lake if it is a permanent body of water found within 2 miles of the coast. These types of lakes are rare, being found only in the U.S., New Zealand, Australia and Madagascar. We are fortunate to have 15 coastal dune lakes in our area.
Local coastal dune lakes are a recent geological phenomenon, formed a mere 4,000 to 5,000 years ago by wind and migrating sand. Northwest Florida’s lakes are unique because they have an outfall. An outfall occurs when the lake overflows, bursts through the dunes and exchanges water with the Gulf of Mexico. Because of this unique feature, the lakes contain fresh and salt water of varying salinities.
The lakes are surrounded by a variety of ecosystems including: maritime hammock, flatwoods, scrub, upland pine forest, sandhill, seepage slope, wet prairie and the densest concentration of carnivorous plants. The accompanying wildlife is equally diverse and includes bears, deer, squirrel, rabbits, alligators, snakes, tortoise and turtles, crabs, migratory birds, shorebirds, osprey, eagles and fresh and saltwater fish.
Several threatened and endangered species, like the beach mouse, plovers and gopher tortoise also call the lakes and surrounding dunes home.
The lakes have high recreational value in our area. Popular activities include photography, boating, paddling, fishing, hiking, bird and butterfly watching.
If you would like to learn more about the dune lakes, bring a camera Nov. 3 and join Walton County Extension Agent Evan Anderson (agriculture) and I for a walking tour of the Grayton Beach Nature Trail around Western Lake.
For more information and to register for this event, please go to https://www.eventbrite.com and enter “Dune Lake Tour”; the cost is $10 per person.
Laura Tiu is an agent at the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension office in Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Exploring Northwest Florida’s coastal dune lakes