Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park is a

salt marsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is domin ...

that stretches from

Cedar Key Cedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 702 at the 2010 census. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of islands near the mainland. Most of the developed area of the city has been on Way Key since the end of the 19th ...

and Yankee Town, and is only accessible by boat. It includes the part of Gulf Hammock wetlands area that is closest to the Gulf. Some access points are from County Road 40 in Yankee Town, by boat down the

Waccasassa River The Waccasassa River is a small, isolated river in Levy County, Florida, flowing through the Gulf Hammock (wetlands), Gulf Hammock wetlands and emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. The river is long, and has a drainage basin of . Three-quarters of ...

from the community of Gulf Hammock, and Cedar Key. It is the home to numerous species of

saltwater Saline water (more commonly known as salt water) is water that contains a high concentration of dissolved salts (mainly sodium chloride). On the United States Geological Survey (USGS) salinity scale, saline water is saltier than brackish water, ...

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of ...

and shellfish, as well as many

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

and

threatened species Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of '' critical depen ...

, including

manatee Manatees (family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing three of the four living speci ...

alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...

s, bald eagles and

black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...

s. The bay is also the only known habitat for a highly endangered species of rodent, the

Florida salt marsh vole The Florida salt marsh vole (''Microtus dukecampbelli'') is a North American vole endemic to the state of Florida in the United States. Taxonomy It was formerly thought conspecific with the eastern meadow vole (''M. pennsylvanicus''), but more ...

(''Microtus dukecampbelli''). Florida wacca bay

Hours

Florida state parks are open between 8 a.m. and sundown every day of the year (including holidays).

References

External links

Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park
a
Florida State Parks
State parks of Florida Parks in Levy County, Florida Swamps of Florida National Natural Landmarks in Florida Landforms of Levy County, Florida 1976 establishments in Florida Protected areas established in 1976 {{LevyCountyFL-geo-stub