Photo by Patrick Obrien
6:50 p. m.: It’ s almost dark, and I’ m getting hungry. Time to leave my favorite daytime resting spot behind these homes on Surfsong Road. These secondary dunes have some of thickest,“ scrub-shrub” vegetation on Kiawah and provide me with a great place to rest during the day. My other favorite resting spot is in the dense vegetation along the marsh edge. Both of these areas are vital to my survival on Kiawah. As I sit here in the dunes, humans constantly walk by on the boardwalks going to the beach. They have no idea that I’ ve been sitting here all day, perfectly concealed in these dense tangles of wax myrtles and catbriers.
8:10 p. m.: I’ m on the move! I think I’ ll head west down Surfsong Road to start my nightly circuit of my range, here in the center of the Island. I need to loop around the end of Canvasback Pond so I can head north. Like other adult females on Kiawah, my home range is about half the size of a dominant adult male. But unlike the males, who are very territorial, we often share our space with other females.
9:40 p. m.: I’ ve followed the“ edge” habitat along the 18 th hole and driving range at Turtle Point Golf Course up to Governors Drive, just across from Airy Hall. I’ ve kept a pretty steady pace through this area and haven’ t come across any mice or rats, yet. Even though it’ s pretty late, I have to be extra careful crossing the street here— vehicle collisions are the leading cause of death for bobcats on Kiawah, so to all those cars out there, please slow down when you’ re driving at night!
Midnight: I just made a brief visit to the Wassén Preserve at 9 Airy Hall— the first piece of land that was protected by the Kiawah Conservancy back in the year 2000 before I was born! Although it is just a small parcel, the maritime forest habitat provides a good place to get some cover as I travel through the night. Deer and birds use these permanent conservation areas all the time, too. Before moving too much farther east, I finally caught a nice, big marsh rat for dinner. The suburban environment on Kiawah makes it a little easier for me to find and catch my prey. But I’ m also thankful for all of the green space, habitats, and protected areas that allow me to rest and den here.
2:31 a. m.: After that nice meal, I’ ve been back on the move, traversing the“ Halls” towards the Vanderhorst Plantation and Flyway Drive, then back across Governors Drive. After following the“ edge” corridor along number 14 at Osprey
Point Golf Course back to Bufflehead Pond, I decided to cross the cart bridge here to continue my route. People may not realize it, but we use many of the bridges and paths on Kiawah to get around. Some of my pals on the west end of the Island even cross the Kiawah River Bridge on the Parkway! 4:00 a. m.: I just cruised along the edge of Canvasback Pond again, as I head back toward the beach and my favorite resting spot in the dunes. I love to travel and hunt through all these human yards, especially the ones with dense understory vegetation. Many property owners have the“ Naturally Kiawah” emblem on their mailbox post, which signifies that the property maintains valuable habitat for wildlife. Thank you for adding to Kiawah’ s rich habitat by improving the natural spaces in your yards!
5:10 a. m.: The sun will be coming up soon. I need to hustle back to the dunes, but on the way, I passed close to Augusta National. I’ ve been there before, and it looks like I might be able to find a den site around there, if I need to in the future.*
5:20 a. m.: I just crossed Canvasback Pond, using the bridge that connects the leisure path to the beach. I really didn’ t feel like walking all the way around the pond. After I proceed through a couple more“ Naturally Kiawah” yards on Surfsong Road, I get back to my resting spot in the dunes, about an hour before sunrise.
As you can see, I use many of the habitats on Kiawah to travel, hunt, and rest— from the dune fields and marsh edges to the maritime forests, golf courses, and backyards. They are all very important to me. But these daytime resting areas and large undeveloped spaces of habitat are especially important for us bobcats to continue living on Kiawah, because they provide the areas we need to rest and hide during the day and also raise our kittens. With your help and the continued efforts of the Kiawah Conservancy to acquire land and conservation easements, work with residents to improve“ backyard” habitat, and educate the community on the needs of wildlife, I think we’ ll be here for a long time! NK
* Bobcat 118’ s den was located under a vacant house on Augusta National, just prior to when her GPS collar was released. Two healthy kittens were located by Town Wildlife Biologists at her den— the first documented bobcat den under a house on Kiawah.
WINTER / SPRING 2017 • VOLUME 37
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