![](https://web.archive.org/web/20160126201606im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a6/Sunset_Gulfport_Florida_2012.jpg/220px-Sunset_Gulfport_Florida_2012.jpg)
Boca Ciega Bay is a body of water bordering Gulfport, Florida, St. Petersburg, and other municipalities in Pinellas County.[1] Clam Bayou estuary feeds into the bay.
Boca Ciega Bay is an aquatic preserve designated in 1968 to halt dredging-and-filling work done in the 1950s. There are mangrove islands as well as miles of canals bounded by seawalls.[2]
Along with the Pinellas County Aquatic Preserve, Boca Ciega Bay provides sandy beaches, mangrove shoreline and submerged habitats such as oyster bars, seagrass beds, coral habitat, and spring-fed caves.[3]
The 185-acre Boca Ciega Millennium Park in Seminole, Florida, is a protected natural area and preserve.[1][4] The park features a 35-foot wooden observation tower with a panoramic view of Boca Ciega Bay. The park is a stop on the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's "Great Florida Birding Trail."
In August 2015, 3 million gallons of raw sewage was dumped into the bay by an overloaded sewer system in Saint Petersburg.[citation needed]
See also
References
- ^ a b Boca Ciega Bay boater's guide (includes map)
- ^ description Pinellas Department of Environmental Quality
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Boca Ciega Millennium Park". Pinellas County Florida Parks and Preserves. Retrieved 13 May 2014.