A B C

GC Staff Favorites Did you know...? • The Conservancy established the first all-encompassing trail map of Cumberland Island in 2017 (as well as helped re- establish a few of the trails!) Georgia Conservancy’s • Cumberland Island is the largest of the Georgia barrier islands field guide to (17 miles long, 3 miles at widest point) and is the westernmost point of the Atlantic coast in the United States. • The First African Baptist Church, established in 1893, was the Invest in Your Georgia venue for John F. Kennedy Jr.’s wedding in 1996 • The wilderness area on the island includes some old-growth live During the next 12 months the Georgia Conservancy’s Stewardship oak trees over 400 years old. Trips Program will lead hundreds of people on hiking, paddling, camping, and service trips to far-flung places, all while celebrating Learn more at: conservation, culture, food, music, diversity, and family. www.georgiaconservancy.org/cumberland-trails We want folks breaking bread on Georgia’s riverbanks or singing songs around a campfire, from the mountains through the coastal plain and to our amazing saltwater marsh and barrier islands.

Our goal is simple: Create a connection between some of Georgia’s most precious places and the people needed to protect them. www.gaconservancy.org/trips BECOME A MEMBER OR DONOR TODAY!

Hiking Trails The Georgia Conservancy is a statewide, member-supported An increasingly wild island, Cumberland Island National Seashore conservation organization working to protect Georgia’s natural offers hikers and backpackers a unique combination of ecosystems resources through environmental advocacy, coastal in a way that no other southeastern barrier island of its kind can. protection, sustainable growth, and outdoor stewardship initiatives. Towering dunes, freshwater lakes, maritime forest, salt marsh, deserted beach - Cumberland has it all. We hope you enjoy the experience of visiting this special place. Help to ensure that places like this continue to be protected and add to CUMBERLAND GC Favorite: Roller Coaster Trail - 3.0 miles Georgia’s quality of life. Accessible via Lost Trail, the trail takes a gentle up and down www.gaconservancy.org/donate ISLAND course, meandering through maritime forest and ancient dunes on Cumberland’s north end. National Seashore Download our map here: #thisismyGA www.georgiaconservancy.org/cumberland-trails Our mission is to protect and conserve And remember: Leave No Trace! Thank you for your support and guidance Georgia’s natural resources through Leave No Trace is a set of outdoor ethics promoting conservation advocacy, engagement and collaboration. in the outdoors. It consists of seven principles: 1) plan ahead and Savannah Presbytery M.K. Pentecost Ecology Fund prepare, 2) travel and camp on durable surfaces, 3) dispose of waste properly, 4) leave what you find,5) minimize campfire impacts,6) respect wildlife, 7) be considerate of other visitors. Fall 2019 1 2 3

Preserve the Biodiversity flora Biodiversity is the variability of plant and animal (flora and fauna) Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoide) (LC) species in an ecosystem as well as the genetic diversity within Spanish moss is usually found growing and hanging off of tree species. Each species uses a different part of the environment and branches. The plant does not hurt the tree in any way, it does are interdependent on each other to survive. Biodiversity makes not take water nor nutrients from the tree, but rather draws each ecosystem unique. The more biodiverse an ecosystem is, the necessities from the air. Spanish moss is actually not a moss at better suited it is for energy transfers through the food chain, energy all, but a bromeliad, distantly related to the pineapple family. storage, decomposition and recycling. We highly advise against eating it though, as it is often filled with small bugs called chiggers and they bite! fauna Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) (LC) History Look for The saw palmetto reaches a height of seven to ten feet on Tracks! average and just about as wide. Native to Cumberland Human occupation of Cumberland began around 2000 B.C. as it but it can also be found across the southeast from South did in most of Georgia’s barrier islands, with the people living off Carolina to Texas. They grow long leaves, yellow flowers the fresh water ponds and abundance of deer, oysters, and fish. White-tailed deer and berries that feed many wildlife and have gained interest Since then, the island has changed hands many times, starting with Nine-Banded Armadillo lately as a possible treatment for prostate cancer. Spanish missionaries going north up the coast from Florida in the (Odeceilous virginianus) (Procyon lotor) (Dasypus novemcinctus) (LC) 1500s. Many influential figures have made their claim to parts of the (LC) (LC) Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) (LC) island including the Candlers, the Carnegies, and General Nathaniel DID YOU KNOW? Greene and Catherine “Katy” Greene Miller, and they have all left Bobcats went extinct from the island around 1900. In the late 1980’s, NPS, The Virginia creeper is common in the understory of the with the help of UGA, reintrodcued the native predator with great success. island. The name “creeper” comes from its vertical climbing their mark. Ruins of the Carnegies’ Dungeness Mansion can be seen ability. It is often found climbing up and/or hanging off live on the south end of Cumberland Island. oaks in the forest, but will grow across the ground if there are no vertical options. The vine is mostly harmless to large Cultural and Ecological Significance trees, but can block sunlight or choke a plant, killing it. The leaves are generally a vibrant green but turn beautiful shades Cumberland Island is one of the most preserved barrier islands of red and purple before falling off in the winter. of Georgia, even with the presence of humans and a history of plantation farming. In 1972, the island became a National Seashore. Though some land remains private, most of the island is managed Issues Facing Conservation by the National Park Service (NPS) for preservation. NPS manages Black Skimmer Wild Turkey Great Blue Heron Feral Horses on Cumberland Island the land’s biodiversity by protecting the habitats and ecosystems, (Rynchops niger) (Meleagris gallopavo) (Ardea herodias) A feral animal is an animal that was once including fresh water ponds, salt marshes, maritime forests, beaches (LC) (LC) (LC) domesticated, but has reverted to a wild state and and dunes. According to NPS, Cumberland adjusted to surviving in a natural environment Island is home to 385 species of animals and Cumberland Island, and most of the rest of the state, is a part of the without help or support of any kind from humans. more than 500 species of plants! Atlantic Flyway, a migratory bird path that allows birds to travel north and south on the east coast. During their history on the island, horses have Cumberland has become a popular been managed as both free-ranging and corralled livestock. By the destination for hikers, explorers, hunters, North Atlantic mid-1900s, horses were roaming the island with little or no care photographers and many others looking Right Whale provided from island residents. The feral horses are considered a for a unique adventure in nature. In earlier Loggerhead (Eubalaena glacialis) non-native, invasive species on the island. Often, non-native species years, the island became a spot for the super Turtle (EN) will not have natural predators, so their numbers grow unchecked. wealthy to recreate, relax and spend leisure (Caretta caretta) Right off the coast of Georgia With the large population size, the island has been suffering from time. The demographics have changed, but (EN) is one of the most vital calving problems such as overgrazing. This leaves very little vegetation to people still adore the island for recreation grounds for the right whale. The hold the sandy soil in place and has resulted in erosion problems opportunities on public land. Opportunities right whale is one of the most and soil compaction, preventing new vegetation from growing. and accommodations range from long Cumberland’s beaches provide endangered species of whale, with trails to tanning on the beach, backcountry important nesting grounds an estimate of only 400 in the wild. extinct threatened least concern campsites that must be hiked to, and the for loggerhead and green sea Since the 1970s, it has been heavily (all-inclusive) Greyfield Inn for those who turtles. protected under the Endangered Species Act. appreciate the comforts of home. EX EW CR EN VU NT LC