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storical and contemporary accounts that i ve read on the plantations of the i on swamp there were a few sections of the swamp forest that remained relatively unscathed during this early agricultural time it s possible that these tracts could have harbored a few individuals into the mid 1800 s but these tracts were most likely too small for a population of ivory bills to sustain itself topographic map of eastern francis marion national forest with the names of main swamps added in for a greater geographical context just past the bottom left hand corner is the charleston sc area and outside the top right corner is georgetown sc this map was modified from a usgs topographic map the last confirmed ivory billed woodpecker in south carolina was observed in 1938 on wadmacon island wadmacon island is an island in the lower santee swamp which runs along the santee river and is only a mere 20 miles north of the i on swamp although ivory bills were without a doubt gone by 1915 from the i on swamp itself which if you remember from earlier was completely clear cut by this point a few individuals did indeed remain in the greater region in the few pockets of remaining mature bottomland swamps the last confirmed sighting in the united states occurred in 1944 in louisiana by the late 1900 s it was generally assumed the ivory billed was extinct the ivory billed woodpecker however recently jumped back into the public eye after a handful of credible but not 100 confirmed sightings from louisiana arkansas and florida came to light in the early 2000 s this raised the question as to whether the ivory billed was truly extinct or if tiny populations remained in remote and relatively untouched bottomland swamps around the southeast sadly even if the ivory billed woodpecker is not truly extinct and a few individuals are indeed still alive in one or a handful of swamps around the southeastern us the species is still functionally extinct any such population if one were to truly exist would be too small to be viable over the long term carolina parakeet painting by john james audubon 1825 new york historical society the carolina parakeet was the second species to become extirpated from the i on swamp the carolina parakeet the only parrot species that was native to the eastern us was a denizen of mature swamps and forested floodplains filled with either american sycamores or bald cypresses the carolina parakeet used to be quite common throughout the appropriate habitat in the 1700 s but their populations began plummeting in the early 1800 s the exact causes for the decline and ultimate extinction of the carolina parakeet are still debated but most agree it was probably a combination of several factors habitat destruction via logging unchecked hunting to attain their colorful feathers unchecked hunting by farmers who viewed them as pests and other factors all contributed to the decline and eventual demise of the carolina parakeet carolina parakeets living in the i on swamp probably began facing trouble in the late 1700 s as the mature bald cypress trees whose cavities they nested in throughout the swamp were cleared to make way for the rice plantation fields when did they most likely disappear from the i on swamp although i can t find any specific reports of this species from the swamp i would say that the carolina parakeet was most likely extirpated from the i on swamp by 1810 1840 based on two details first many naturalists noted that carolina parakeet sightings were rarely made outside of florida by the 1850 s which suggests that most of the populations in south carolina were probably gone by the early 1800 s second most of the i on swamp was already intensely farmed for rice by 1820 1830 which means that most if not all of the appropriate carolina parakeet habitat was gone no carolina parakeet habitat no carolina parakeets by 1904 the last known wild individual was observed and promptly killed the year 1918 saw the death of the last captive individual by 1939 the species was declared officially extinct although tantalizing reports of carolina parakeets trickled in from florida georgia and south carolina between 1930 and 1960 the santee swamp was one site of such reports with a handful of unconfirmed sightings of carolina parakeets inhabiting the dense relatively untouched swamp were made throughout the 1930 s if you remember this is the same swamp which harbored ivory billed woodpeckers into the 1930 s and is only 20 miles north of the i on swamp as well several credible people such as bird wardens hired by the national audubon society reported seeing carolina parakeets in the santee swamp including on wadmacon island the same island where the last confirmed ivory billed woodpecker in south carolina was observed although these sightings were never confirmed the existence of a small remnant population of carolina parakeets existing into the 1930 s in the santee swamp seems plausible despite such thoughts they are certainly extinct now bachman s warbler painting by john james audubon 1833 reynolda house museum of american art the final species i want to discuss is perhaps the reason why the i on swamp is famous in the world of birders and naturalists the i on swamp was the last known refuge for the bachman s warbler the bachman s pronounced back man s warbler was a small migrant songbird which bred in swamps throughout the southeastern united states and overwintered in cuba the bachman s warbler was always a mysterious and hard to find species it was first described by john james audubon in 1833 when an individual was discovered in south carolina over the next few decades more individuals were recorded in other southern states but the species seemingly disappeared from south carolina the bachman s warbler was rediscovered in south carolina by arthur t wayne a victorian ornithologist in 1901 the individual that wayne found had been inhabiting the remnants of the fairlawn plantation one of the old rice plantations found on the southern end of the i on swamp as an aside arthur t wayne lived an absolutely fascinating life filled with ornithological endeavors i highly recommend reading this short 6 page biography on the man wayne who lived in the charleston area began systematically searching for more bachman s warblers in the i on swamp specifically throughout the old fairlawn plantation property in 1906 he found two nests providing evidence that the warbler did indeed breed in the i on swamp and didn t just use the swamp as a migration stopover over the next several years he found many more individuals and nests as i said the bachman s warbler was always hard to find and its ecology is rather misunderstood there have been no actual studies ever done on this species prior to its extinction everything we know comes from naturalists in the 1800 s and early 1900 s who thankfully recorded bits and pieces of information on the species whether it was the habitat one was found in or the behavior of an individual or what have you the last confirmed sighting of a bachman s warbler was in 1988 and the species is almost certainly extinct the cause for the extinction of the species has been subject to debate and several hypotheses have been put forth about the cause nearly everyone agrees the bachman s warbler went extinct due to habitat destruction but no one knows what type of habitat the warbler exactly required the bachman s warbler vanished before any thorough studies of its habitat requirements could be conducted the little habitat information we do have is confusing and contradictory which further complicates matters for example some naturalists found the bachman s warblers in mature swamp forests others found it in young successional swamp forests if habitat destruction was the killer of the bachman s warbler what specific habitat feature was destroyed that the bachman s warbler relied on although bachman s warblers had been recorded in mature swamp forests it seems unlikely that they depended on such a habitat like the ivory billed woodpecker did between 1948 and 1953 there were many bachman s warblers observed throughout the i on swamp which if you remember was all but a young secondary growth swamp forest at that time after the period of intense logging between 1900 1920 the prevalence of the bachman s warbler in the i on swamp when it was a young secondary growth swamp forest has made some scientists hypothesize that the species relied on disturbed successional areas within swamps similar to how the blue winged warbler and prairie warbler rely on similarly disturbed successional areas within forests drier areas within the i on swamp like the area pictured above would have been the site of extensive giant cane canebrakes nowadays such extensive canebrakes have vanished the apparent fact that bachman s warblers could be found in both mature and successional swamp forests suggests that there was some other habitat component or feature that they relied on and not simply the age of the forest in 1986 j v remsen jr published an article in the auk that argued the bachman s warbler was actually a bamboo specialist throughout the southeastern us there s a species of bamboo called giant cane arundinaria gigantea giant cane used to be extremely prevalent throughout the swamps of the southeast many times forming near impenetrable understories called canebrakes which would go on for miles in swamps over the most recent 300 years approximately 98 of these canebrakes were cut down or otherwise destroyed as they proved a barrier to farmers and travelers sadly giant cane is a finicky slow growing plant with a low reproduction rate and the remaining individuals have been unable to fully recolonize the sites of former canebrakes although you can still find giant cane today as well as dense canebrakes these are nowhere near as dense and extensive as they once were what does that have to with the bachman s warbler as it turns out most of the notes that naturalists recorded on the habitat of the bachman s warbler mentioned the presence of giant cane this is even more prevalent when reading descriptions of where nests were found nearly all of them mention the nests being either in giant cane plants or being in the same vicinity of giant cane many of their nests even contained leaves from giant cane this suggests that the bachman s warbler might have been a bamboo specialist a niche that many birds across the world utilize if this is true then it makes sense that the bachman s warbler disappeared as the giant cane canebrakes became less and less extensive throughout the southeast is the decline of giant cane the sole reason for the extinction of the bachman s warbler probably not although it might be the main contributor to the destruction of the species other factors probably exacerbated the decline the destruction of swamps across the southeast the destruction of their wintering habitats in cuba and potentially unknown factors might have all helped drive the bachman s warbler to extinction the i on swamp today visiting the i on swamp today can be a difficult endeavor the swamp is large and only a few gravel and dirt roads allow access only one trail exists in the whole of the swamp that trail the 2 5 mile i on swamp interpretive trail is part of the francis marion national forest trail system the i on swamp interpretive trail offers the easiest way for visitors to get into the swamp but at only 2 5 miles it allows visitors a tiny glimpse of the swamp short of bushwhacking through the swamp the trail is the best choice visitors have to see the swamp nearly the entirety of the i on swamp interpretive trail runs atop ancient dikes that once belonged to the wythewood plantation one of the main rice plantations that used to call the swamp home as you walk along the nearly 300 year old dikes you can t help but marvel at the engineering feat they represent at the same time you can t help but feel an overwhelming sorrow when you realize that enslaved peoples from africa were the ones who toiled away to make these extensive dikes the colonial and early american rice industry was the second most dangerous industry for enslaved peoples to find themselves part of second only to the sugar cane industry between the harsh owners never ending work the oppressive heat of the carolina lowcountry rampant diseases and dangerous wildlife being a rice plantation slave was an absolutely brutal and many times short affair injuries and deaths were commonplace the mortality rate of enslaved peoples working on rice plantations is mind numbing to consider at some rice plantations almost 90 of children died before they reached 16 years old many adults did not make it past 30 the profit margins on rice were so high that an enslaved person only had to work for one season for the owner to make back the cost of the slave so slaves were viewed as a highly dispensable commodity although this mentality seems unfathomable today it was sadly common throughout the lowcountry in the 1700 s and 1800 s today the i on swamp looks like a very young secondary growth swamp forest when hurricane hugo slammed south carolina in 1989 the winds knocked down essentially all of the trees in the eastern section of francis marion nf including the i on swamp consequently most of the i on swamp s forest is only 28 years old despite the young age the forest is still impressive dwarf palmettos cover the ground red maples and black tupelos take hold in the drier areas bald cypresses dot the wetter areas where their knees jut up through the shallow tannin stained water alligators bask along the banks of the ancient dikes and river otters swim through the canals the place feels natural on the surface but while it is still natural to a certain extent true the i on swamp is scarred animals which should call the swamp home are forever gone plants which should be easily found throughout the swamp are uncommon and nowhere near as extensive as they used to be the water flows in unnatural channels and canals separated by earthen banks that shouldn t be there the landscape has been forever changed and a sorrow hangs in the air not only because the land will never be as it once was but also because so many lives were unnecessarily lost here despite the scars the i on swamp is nevertheless a fascinating place go visit the swamp if you re in the lowcountry of south carolina walk along the ancient rice field dikes as you travel through the swamp forest look for animals and plants and enjoy the landscape but while you do don t forget to take a few moments to reflect on all the history bound up in this swamp posted by kyle brooks at 1 19 pm 5 comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels nature ohio photography parks anthropology birds coastal plain conservation human history national forests ornithology south carolina south carolina history swamps wetlands location i on swamp rd awendaw sc 29429 usa tue...