. 7 Footnotes South Miami Heights Legend Coral Gables; In 1891 a Cleveland woman named Julia Tuttle decided to move to South Florida to make a new start in her life after the death of her husband Frederick Tuttle She purchased 640 acres on the north bank of the Miami River in present-day downtown Miami; Religion in Florida (2014) 1990 1,937,094 19.1%, T.Y Hilton As rain continued to fall the slightly acidic rainwater dissolved the limestone as limestone wore away the groundwater came into contact with the land surface and created a massive wetland ecosystem Although the region appears flat weathering of the limestone created slight valleys and plateaus in some areas These plateaus rise and fall only a few inches but on the subtle South Florida topography these small variations affect both the flow of water and the types of vegetation that can take hold.

. Bobby Maduro Miami Stadium Greyhound Lines Greyhound Fire Rescue Much of the coast and the inner estuaries are built of mangroves; there is no border between the coastal marshes and the bay Thus the marine ecosystems in Florida Bay are considered to be a part of the Everglades watershed and one of the ecosystems connected to and affected by the Everglades as a whole More than 800 square miles (2,100 km2) of Florida Bay is protected by Everglades National Park representing the largest body of water in the park boundaries There are approximately 100 keys in Florida Bay many of which are mangrove forests the fresh water coming into Florida Bay from the Everglades creates perfect conditions for vast beds of turtle grass and algae formations that are the foundation for animal life in the bay Sea turtles and manatees eat the grass while invertebrate animals such as worms clams and other mollusks eat the algae formations and microscopic plankton Female sea turtles return annually to nest on the shore and manatees spend the winter months in the warmer water of the bay Sea grasses also serve to stabilize the sea beds and protect shorelines from erosion by absorbing energy from waves. .