THINGS TO DO IN JUPITER — NATIVE PLANTS ON LOXAHATCHEE
4/16/2021
THINGS TO DO IN JUPITER!
SEA GRASS — PRESERVING SEA LIFE
If manatees or sea turtles could talk, one of the first things they would tell you is to preserve sea grass.
Known as shoal grass and Johnson’s seagrass, the seagrass meadows provide refuge for juvenile fish and food for sea turtles and manatees. Like mangroves, sea grass protects the coastline by acting as a buffer against big waves eroding the shore.
Where to find a sea grass meadow on your Things To Do in Jupiter adventure? There’s one right off DuBois Park.
Take a tour with Jupiter Outdoor Center and JOC guides will tell you all about the ecosystem.
DID YOU KNOW?
Thank sea grass for the clarity of the water around a sea grass meadow. Like an aquatic vacuum cleaner, sea grass sucks up nutrients and bacteria, making it easy to spot sea turtles, manatees and other sealife.
MANGROVES — THEY LIVE ON THE EDGE
Gripping the shore with their spindly fingers, mangroves are friends to fish, humans and the environment.
Juvenile snapper, tarpon and jack use the tall trees in Jupiter Inlet‘s coastal, salty waters as hiding places from predators.
Us humans love mangroves, which are natural buffers against storm surges.
The environment partners with mangroves against global warming. Mangroves are great at absorbing and storing carbon.
Your expert JOC guide will explain it all to you on your Things To Do in Jupiter adventure.
DID YOU KNOW?
Red, black and white are the types of mangroves in South Florida. You can tell them apart by the root structure and shape of their leaves.
BALD CYPRESS – A GIANT AMONG TREES
Fast growing and majestic, bald cypress trees along the Loxahatchee River in Riverbend Park average growing about 24 to 36 inches per year.
One of the few South Florida trees that change colors with the season, bald cypress leaves light up the forest with tan, cinnamon, and fiery orange leaves in the fall. Leafy skyscrapers, the trees can get up to 70 feet tall.
Checking them out is a wondrous way to nurture with nature as you enjoy your Things To Do in Jupiter tour.
DID YOU KNOW?
The trees get the name “bald” cypress because they drop their leaves so early in the season.
STRANGLER FIG — WITHOUT BIRDS, THEY WOULD BE IN TROUBLE
When the seeds of a strangler fig are dropped into the top of a cabbage palm or other tree by a bird, they germinate.
Inside the tree, dozens of tendril-like roots plummet towards the ground, attacking the tree.
Strangler figs are common around the first dam along your Things To Do in Jupiter trip and other spots along the Wild & Scenic Loxahatchee River.
DID YOU KNOW?
The story of the strangler fig doesn’t end pretty. The strangler fig roots wrap around the host tree’s roots. That cuts off food and water, killing the tree.
SWAMP LILLY — SWAMPY SHOWOFFS
Sweet smelling like a lilac and brash like a prom queen, the plants thrive in the still, nutrient-rich waters along the shady banks of the Loxahatchee River.
When a swamp lilly opens its petals, they droop backwards, puzzling character on your Things To Do in Jupiter trip.
Purplish outgrowths that look like antlers emerge.
The look is somehow space-age and prehistoric at the same time.
Gulped by grasshoppers, they bloom year round in South Florida and can be found often on Things To Do in Jupiter adventures.
DID YOU KNOW?
Swamp lillies are like Publix for insects. The sweet smelling flowers attract bees, wasps, beetles and flies.
Read JOC’s blog: More Things To Do in Jupiter.
