Protecting More than an Entrance
By Justin Core
As a result of the community-approved parcel trade agreement between the Kiawah Island Community Association ( KICA ) and the Kiawah Partners , the Kiawah Conservancy accepted land and conservation easement donations from the Kiawah Partners totaling over 740 acres on December 7 , 2017 .
Mingo North and Mingo South , the upland “ fingers ” that form the eastern half of a hummock island that spans the Kiawah Island Parkway , are protected in perpetuity by a conservation easement held by the Conservancy . Ownership of these properties have been conveyed to KICA by Kiawah Partners . An additional conservation easement was assigned to the marshlands of the western half of the Kiawah River , protecting not only tidal wetlands and shrub thicket habitats but also a handful of small hummock islands , including Marsh Hawk Island and the Mink Islands . In addition to these areas , the Partners gifted an eight-acre hummock island on Bass Creek , at the eastern end of Kiawah to the Conservancy .
While the conservation of Mingo North and Mingo South will protect the “ entrance to Kiawah ,” these areas and the adjacent marshlands and hummocks provide valuable benefits to a host of wildlife . The Town of Kiawah Island has documented Mingo North and Mingo South , as well as the upland edges of the marsh approaching Cougar Point Golf Course along the northern side of Oyster Rake , as important bobcat areas .
The maritime forest and shrub thickets found in these areas provide critical daytime resting habitat for bobcats , as indicated by Bobcat GPS Project data collected since 2007 . Besides bobcats , Mingo North and Mingo South are used by a variety of birds , including painted buntings , cedar waxwings , Carolina chickadees , and red-bellied woodpeckers . The federally listed “ at risk ” monarch butterfly finds a robust foraging area here , as the numerous groundsel trees provide a vital fall food source for migrating and overwintering butterflies .
In addition to the habitat afforded by the protection of Mingo North and Mingo South , the adjacent tidal salt marshes and hummock islands provide additional habitat for several unique species . MacGillivray ’ s seaside sparrow ,
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