New member, and resident of north Florida.

I have 25 acres, which has a low area on the site that I'm thinking about turning into a pond (much of the rest of the land is tree farm).

Exploring options, and gathering information.

Your overall budget dictates the pond's/lake's design and its inhabitants. Of course, the geolocation is crucial for the planning of the pond as well.

What's your flavors of the pond/lake in mind?

Simon welcome to the forum. There is a ton of information here to absorb. Read and ask lots of questions. Lots of smart and helpful folks here to help. Outline what you are trying to accomplish and these guys can point you in the right direction.

I don't know where in Florida you are but this member in NW Florida posted several helpful pictures and videos. He hasn't posted since 2015.

Redoing a NW Florida pond

Then below there is a great thread with lots of good pictures from NE Florida (N of Jacksonville)

New pond in NE Florida

These members and others in Florida can probably help you quite a bit!

Welcome to the forum! You came to the right place!

The pond won't be terribly large. I'm thinking an acre to an acre-and-a-half. It's mostly for aesthetics, and some light fishing for myself and my kids. I have an undergraduate degree in Zoology, so I like critters, and don't mind the ecology-management piece.

What I want to avoid is entanglement with any government red-tape (I know politics are discouraged here, but you know what I'm getting at). I have a neighbor who built a pond, and ended up getting into a pissing contest with the EPA (he's a lawyer, but I think he ended up having to give up the property... I don't want that to happen to me). The EPA doesn't take kindly to the "better to beg forgiveness than ask permission" philosophy, so I'd rather have the thing properly permitted/approved before I start digging.

There's no rush on this project, so I don't mind the delay.