Fakahatchee Strand

The Fakahatchee Strand (Mikasuki Fakahatchee, meaning "muddy creek") is a strand swamp in Collier County, Florida. It is the largest and best known strand swamp and hosts a large variety of plants in several diverse habitats. The Fakahatchee Strand is in the Big Cypress Swamp, but not in the national preserve. It has a tropical climate and hosts both temperate and tropical plants. In many parts it resembles a tropical rainforest. The Fakahatchee used to be dominated by bald cypress trees. In the mid-20th century almost all of the mature cypress trees in the strand, as well as in the rest of the Big Cypress Swamp, were logged out. Attempts to drain wetlands to allow residential and commercial development during the 20th century lowered the water levels in the strand. Remediation efforts starting in the 1970s have partially restored water levels in the strand. Most of the Fakahatchee Strand has been protected in the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park since the 1970s. The northern part of the Fakahatchee Strand is protected in the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. The Fakahatchee Strand hosts a large number of vascular plants and lichens, more than half of which are tropical. It hosts several species found nowhere else in the contiguous United States, and a number of rare species or subspecies. Many plants and animals found in the Fakahatchee are classified as endanger

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