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Description:
Carolina Sandhills NWR is a demonstration site for land management practices which preserve and enhance the longleaf pine/wiregrass ecosystem. Numerous small creeks & tributaries flow through the refuge. Several bottomland hardwood species & dense stands of evergreen shrubs occur along these streams forming pocosin areas throughout the refuge. Thirty man-made lakes & ponds & over 1,200 acres of fallow fields, forest openings, & cultivated fields contribute to the diverse habitat found here. Approximately 190 species of birds, 42 species of reptiles, 25 species of amphibians, & innumerable species of plants occur on the refuge. Species of interest include the red-cockaded woodpecker, pine barrens treefrog, Bachman's sparrow, white wicky, Well's pixie moss, & several species of pitcher plants & sundews. The refuge supports an estimated 125 clusters of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker,the largest population found on any refuge unit in the nation. Many of the refuge's program activities (research, prescribed burning, timber harvest prescriptions, artificial cavity installation, translocating juvenile birds, etc.) are aimed at creating & maintaining optimum habitat conditions & aiding in recovery efforts for the red-cockaded woodpecker. Directions:
From Columbia, SC take I-20 East, exiting at Exit 98 and turning left onto Hwy. 521. Follow Hwy. 521 into Camden, SC to the intersection of U. S. Hwy. 1 and 521. Turn right, going north on Highway 1. Follow Hwy. 1 for approximately 35 miles, going through Camden, Bethune, and McBee. The entrance to the refuge is 3-1/2 miles north of McBee. From Florence, SC, take Highway 52 West to S. C. Highway 151 West in Darlington. Follow Hwy. 151 approximately 20 miles to the intersection of Hwy. 151 and U. S. Hwy. 1 in McBee. Turn right, following Hwy. 1 North for 3-1/2 miles to the refuge entrance.
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