Previous Name

Size

Elevation

Public Ramp(s)

Access to other lake(s)

None

86
Acres

N/A

85

No

No

Lake Annie is a pristine, 90 acre sinkhole lake located at the northern end of the Archbold main property. Purchased in 1983, as part of the Francis and Page Hufty Tract, the lake is of exceptional geological and ecological interest.

It lies at 111 feet (22.7 m) above mean sea level, and is the southernmost of a series of sinkhole lakes extending 200 miles north along and beyond the Lake Wales Ridge.

The lake is 68 feet (20.7 m) deep and contains at least 36 feet (11 m) of sediment. Pollen analysis and C14 dating of sediment cores reveal a continuous record of area vegetation for the past 44,000 years.

The Lake is fed by rain fall and ground water and develops a thermocline at about 33 feet (10 m) during the summer. The water is exceptionally clear and acidic, and the lake has a completely intact native shoreline and submerged aquatic communities.

Limnological studies include monthly analyses of various water quality parameters since 1983. Twenty-two species of native fish live in Lake Annie, and two species of Cladocera are endemic to it.

Ref. Archbold Biological Station