Reports and Studies 2014 Review: 1975 Environment of Kiawah Report | Page 19

Summary & Analysis of the 1975 Kiawah Environmental Report  2. Sand Dunes (2% of the area covered) i. 28 species recorded. ii. Least Tern, American Oystercatcher, and Wilson’s Plover nest here. a) Majority of nesting occurred on Captain Sam’s Spit. b)  pair of Oystercatchers, 3 pairs of Wilson’s Plovers, 2 colonies of Least 1 Terns were observed. c)  Wash-over, wind, and predation cause poor reproductive success. iii.  Other breeding birds included common ground-dove, willet, Eastern meadowlark (no longer seen on Kiawah), redwinged blackbird, and painted bunting. iv.  Ipswich sparrow (rare subspecies of the savannah sparrow) winters in the dunes. v.  uman disturbance is a critical factor that can have an adverse impact for H bird species. 3. Maritime Forest (34% of the area covered) i. 65 species recorded. ii.  tendency to overlook the importance of undisturbed maritime forest. A iii.  This is the most desirable property for development, so population declines can be expected. iv.  Most damaging practice is the reduction of understory and is linked to the declines of several songbird species (i.e. Carolina Wren and White-eyed Vireo). 4. Brackish ponds The list of ponds surveyed in 1975 is as follows: 1. Ibis 7. Sparrow 2. Pintail 8. Bass 3. Egret 9. Rookery 4. Bufflehead 10. Heron 5. Canvasback 11. Falcon 6. Willet 12. Blue Heron i. 69 species recorded ii. Drawdowns in water levels concentrated birdlife. iii.  Rookery Pond (2.4 acre). (Ed note: we are not certain where this pond is or if it still exists.) a) Nesting confined to swamp willows b) Seven species nested: 1. Cattle Egret (50 nests) 2. Great Egret (7 nests) 3.  ittle Blue Heron (LBHE), tri-colored heron (TCHE), and snowy L egret (SNEG). (~50 nests total between SNEG, TCHE, and LBHE) 4. Green Heron (5 nests) 5. Anhinga (5 nests) c) Need to protect the rookery from human disturbance. iv. Waterfowl Usage a) Reported heavy use of waterfowl in winter. b) aterfowl usage depends on pond size, salinity, cover, and W disturbance. c)  Development of Kiawah will result in the creation of adverse conditions for the majority of the wintering waterfowl population. d) Maintain marginal vegetation around ponds. e)  Seasonal water level control at Ibis and Bass Pond Revised: May 2014_REV 8 Page 19