Science and Stewardship
Carolina Bays: Carolina Bays vary in size and type: many are marshy; some dry out, then fill with rainwater; some have been or are lakes. The term Carolina Bays came from the bay trees that grow around these oval depressions, not because the bays hold water.
Carolina Bays are especially rich in biodiversity and provide much-needed habitat for rare and endangered species. Species that thrive in the bays’ habitats include wood storks, herons, egrets and other migratory waterfowl, deer, black bears, the federally threatened flatwoods salamander, spring peepers and several other frogs, whose music we enjoy in the springtime. The bays contain trees such as black gum, bald cypress, pond cypress, sweet bay, loblolly bay, red bay, sweet gum, maple, magnolia, and pond pine, and shrubs such as fetterbush, clethra, sumac, button bush, zenobia, and gallberry. 4,000 Carolina Bays existed in the state.
Now there are fewer than 500. Over the years, Carolina Bays have been filled in for development, farmed, and otherwise altered. During World War II, Carvers Bay in Georgetown County was used as a bombing practice range.
One bay that is preserved and open to the public is at Woods Bay State Park near Turbeville. In Clarendon County, Bennett’s Bay is a Heritage Preserve. In Bamberg County, the South Carolina Native Plant Society manages the Lisa Matthews Memorial Bay, a 52-acre tract that harbors the federally endangered
Carolina’s Coastal Water:
Freshwater Mussels, like clams, are bivalve mollusks that filter water for food. Their well-being and health should also be in question: polluted waters, dam-controlled rivers, and development have put dozens of mussel species on the endangered list. Learn more about these
Freshwater Mussel Survey of the Pee Dee River Watershed, South Carolina
This report documents findings regarding mussel fauna in the Great Pee Dee River and its major tributaries, along with the Black and Waccamaw Rivers. These rivers still contain some great freshwater mussel fauna worthy of our conservation efforts.
This effort was a two-year project conducted by South Carolina Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, who contracted with The Catena Group of Hillsborough, North Carolina to perform SCUBA and shallow water searches in many areas previously unexplored for freshwater mussels.
Although funded entirely by private dollars, The Nature Conservancy is treating this information as public domain. Please feel free to reference this document, and to share it with others who may be interested.
This work was funded primarily by the Mott Foundation, with additional contributions from Progress Energy, Inc. and International Paper, Inc. Labor and logistical support was also provided by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, South Carolina Aquarium, and interested private citizens.
For additional information, contact , Aquatics Program Manager, at (843) 937-8807.
We hear troubling news about rising ocean temperatures. We worry which fish is safe to eat for dinner. Huge numbers of people are coming to South Carolina’s coast, some to launch their boats for the weekend, others to put down roots and build the homes of their dreams. Meanwhile, inland the state continues to grow. That means more people sending more pollution downstream.
