SPringsWatch: Homosassa Springs
This group is currently accepting new volunteers.
The Homosassa Springs Group is a first magnitude spring located within Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. The springs group is comprised of three spring vents that discharge into a spring pool known as the “Fish Bowl.” The park is home to several captive manatees contained behind a barrier located downstream from the spring. The cross-river barrier is removed during winter months so that manatees can use the spring as a refuge from the cold waters of the Gulf of Mexico. A variety of freshwater and saltwater fish also inhabit the pool. The Homosassa Springs Group feeds the Homosassa River, which flows west for approximately six miles before reaching the Gulf of Mexico. The entire river system is tidally influenced.
Volunteers with the Florida SpringsWatch program conduct monthly sampling sessions at Homosassa Springs. Our Homosassa group currently collects data on water temperature, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, vertical light attenuation, and water clarity via vertical Secchi disk measurements. Additionally, this group also conducts visual fish counts within the spring. A mask and snorkel are required for volunteers who wish to participate in fish counts. (Click here to learn more about common fish found in the springs.)
SpringsWatch offers participants a deep dive into understanding the ecology of Florida springs as well as a fun day on the water helping to generate research which supports them. To learn more about the data our volunteers are collecting, click on the monitoring summary or dashboard links below.
Click here or scroll down to sign up, contact us, or learn more about other SpringsWatch locations.
Homosassa SpringsWatch Data AND Monitoring Summaries
Become a citizen scientist And Help Protect Florida's Springs!
Springswatch volunteer application form
*Groups with a wait list are at capacity and currently not accepting new volunteers. If you wish to select one of these groups, we suggest applying for an additional group with no wait list to ensure you are able to participate in sampling as soon as possible. Apply for as many as you like!
SPRINGSWATCH
PROGRAM COORDINATOR
Jill Lingard
FSI SpringsWatch Volunteer Coordinator
The Homossassa SpringsWatch program was funded in part through generous support from the Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida
