17
No.
19
Number
Bobcat after a drink
- Jay Smith
Where the Wild Things Roam
by Jim Jordan
I first set foot on Kiawah Island in September 1996, fresh out of college and pursuing a Master of Science degree through
the University of Georgia. Even though I grew up only two and a half hours up the interstate in Columbia, I had never
visited Kiawah. My first few days here were eye-opening to say the least. I walked and drove the Island for several days
and nights and saw deer, raccoons, foxes and even a bobcat. Growing up in a family of avid
outdoorsmen, these types of sightings were not unusual for me when I was out in the woods,
but I was amazed to find these same animals literally living in people’s backyards.
Since then I have captured, collared, researched and observed the bobcats of Kiawah Island for
more than a decade. It has been an incredible experience for me. I have had, and continue to
have, great support from all Island entities in my endeavors and am particularly grateful to the
Town of Kiawah Island for allowing me the time and resources to do this valuable work and to
the Kiawah Conservancy for providing funding. The more I learn about bobcats here on Kiawah
and around the country, the more I understand how incredibly unique and special it is that bobcats
are still present in healthy numbers on Kiawah Island. I look forward to continuing to increase
the knowledge about bobcats on our Island and to developing and implementing strategies to keep
them here for many years to come.
- Photographs courtesy of Susie Rhodes
18
No.
A Passion for Nature
I was fortunate enough to spend five years on Kiawah Island
as part of my graduate education at the University of Georgia.
During those years I got to experience the natural beauty and
amazing wildlife diversity that has been conserved on the Island
and work with numerous Island residents and employees that
were passionate about keeping Kiawah unique in America. On
a daily basis, I had the pleasure of watching bobcats roaming among the dunes, gray foxes resting in wood lots, whitetailed deer foraging on hummock islands, alligators sunning along pond banks and a diversity of birds that I had never
encountered before or since. As all Island residents know, and many visitors learn, this mix of human development with
continued ecosystem function is extremely rare and needs to be preserved. From the ecosystem-conscious development
plan to the professional wildlife biology staff to the land preservation and habitat improvement work of the Kiawah
Conservancy, I have never seen a locale that values their natural resources more or works harder to protect them. This
passion that the residents and employees of Kiawah Island show for Kiawah’s natural resources is ultimately what
makes the Island unique and is what I love about Kiawah Island.
- Shane Roberts