The Archbold Biological Station (ABS) is a research institute with a surrounding estate near

Lake Placid, Florida Lake Placid is a town in Highlands County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Sebring, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,360, up from 2,223 at the 2010 census. The town has two nickname ...

, US, in Highlands County. It is a venue for field research and education, as well as ranching.

History

The station was established in 1941 by

Richard Archbold Richard Archbold (April 9, 1907 – August 1, 1976) was an American zoologist and philanthropist. He was independently wealthy, being the grandson of the capitalist John Dustin Archbold. He was educated at private schools and later attended class ...

when his sponsorship of zoological research in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

was curtailed by the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the Pacific region. Archbold acquired the initial land for the biological research station through his friend Donald Roebling from his father, John A. Roebling II. Subsequently, additional land was purchased. On July 20, 2007, the station was added to the U.S.

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Environment

The station encompasses an extensive area of

Florida scrub Florida scrub is a forest ecoregion found throughout Florida in the United States. It is found on coastal and inland sand ridges and is characterized by an evergreen Xerophyte, xeromorphic plant community dominated by shrubs and dwarf oaks. Becau ...

, a scientifically interesting and highly threatened

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

. The Station supports 19 federally listed threatened species, including the Sand Skink ('' Neoseps reynoldsi'') and 13 endemic plant species.

Access

The station and grounds are open to visitors, who must register at the main office. There are some displays about the property and its history, a video about the biodiversity and conservation of the

Lake Wales Ridge The Lake Wales Ridge, sometimes referred to as the Mid-Florida Ridge,Eastern States Archaeological Federation. ''Archaeology of Eastern North America, Volume 11'', p. 54 is a sand ridge running for about south to north in Central Florida. Clearl ...

, a 1/2 mile nature trail, and picnic tables. Nature and environmental education programs are offered for schools, adults, and specialty groups.

Climate

The climate of Archbold Biological Station is classified as

humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between la ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Cfa''), bordering on a tropical monsoon climate (''Am''), with hot, humid summers and warm, drier winters. Winters are slightly too cool by about three degrees F (2 degrees C) in January. Also, its inland location on the well-drained sandy soil of the

allows for high

diurnal temperature variation In meteorology, diurnal temperature variation is the variation between a high air temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day. Temperature lag Temperature lag, also known as thermal inertia, is an important factor in diur ...

, with frost and freeze conditions common each year, and a plant

hardiness zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most widely ...

rating of 9. The record high and record low are and , recorded on July 4, 1998, and January 5, 2001, respectively.

References

Bibliography

External links

*
Archbold Biological Station
{{authority control 1941 establishments in Florida Biological research institutes in the United States Buildings and structures in Highlands County, Florida National Natural Landmarks in Florida Nature reserves in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Highlands County, Florida Research institutes in Florida Biological stations Protected areas of Highlands County, Florida Nature centers in Florida Education in Highlands County, Florida