Nemours Plantation Wildlife Foundation

Provide land stewardship to 9,800 acres dedicated to Wildlife and natural resources conservation including forestry management, repair and maintenance of dikes, roads, and water control structures, and planting food plots.

Provide salary and fringe benefits, vehicle, and office for senior scientist and Foundation director to conduct scientific research studies, develop and deliver educational programs in Wildlife conservation, and oversee stewardship of the Nemours Plantation.

Provide housing, salaries, vehicles, fringe benefits, and equipment for 3 land stewards to manage 9,800 acres as habitat for an array of Wildlife species.

Provide housing, salary and fringe benefits, vehicle, and office for 1 Wildlife biologist to conduct scientific investigations and deliver educational programs in Wildlife conservation.

Provided to clemson university direct support for 3 graduate students conducting research on Wildlife species of concern including whooping cranes, invertebrate abundance in brackish marsh impoundments, and black-bellied whistling ducks.

Provide salary for 1 student intern for 1 year to assist staff in scientific investigations and stewardship.

Provided housing, utilities, vehicle, office for 2 interns and 1 graduate student conducting research in Wildlife conservation.

Developed and delivered educational programs to 29 groups ranging in age from kindergarten to adults reaching 600+ individuals.

Ongoing projects on mottle ducks, restoration of pine savannah community, wild turkey nesting, whooping cranes, wood ducks, mapping historical ricefields, etc.

The Foundation has 3 missions which it supports. These are stewardship of the natural, cultural, historical, and infrastructure resources of the 9,800-acre property belonging to the Foundation. The development and delivery of educational programs for all age groups related to the regions natural, cultural, and historical resources, and the scientific study of our natural, cultural, and historical resources.

The 9,800-acre property has 2,000 acres of managed wetland impoundments which date back 250-300 years when the landscape was transformed by enslaved laborers for growing rice. This infrastructure of 21 miles of dikes & 50 water control structures are today maintained for managing the historic rice fields as wetland impoundments producing critical habitats for a suite of Wildlife species, especially migratory birds. Some of these impoundments are specifically managed for a species of highest concern due to population declines including the black rail. The uplands are managed for both timber production & Wildlife habitat. Access to timber stands is maintained by a network of 77 miles of roads. When stands are clear-cut these stands must be prepped for replanting & seedlings purchased to replant. Some forest stands are managed as pine savanna or open wooodlands which are maintained by prescribed burning. These tasks require daily work by staff & equipment to maintain.

The Foundation annually supports several ongoing research graduate student projects which address critical questions to regional Wildlife biology, ecology, and management. We engage in these projects with a goal to use the findings to enhance our ability to be better stewards of our resources. To carry out its research mission, the Foundation provides 3 houses, 4-wheeled drive vehicle, atv, & salary for staff biologist.

The Plantation has significant bottom land hardwood forests which are important to migratory waterfowl and serve as a filter to improve water quality in beaufort county. The harvesting of timber from the Plantation is for the silvicultural improvement of the property and to enhance the quality of timber resources located on the Plantation.

In order to maintain the ecological balance of the Plantation, the Foundation grants leases to various hunting clubs to control the deer population. The total number of deer permitted to be harvested annually is determined by the south carolina fish and Wildlife authority.