Boiling Spring Wilderness

NEARLY 1,000 ACRES TO BE CONSERVED FOR RED-COCKADED WOODPECKERS & VENUS FLYTRAPS

Unique Places to Save will place a state-held conservation easement on nearly 1,000 acres that include the headwaters of Orton Creek, a tributary of the Cape Fear River, to create a model for sustainable real estate development.

This large-scale conservation project nestled between two large conservation properties along the North Carolina coast creates a synergy of ecological benefits. For example, conserved and connected wildlife corridors allow genetic mixing of populations and improve species ability to adapt to changing climate through access to variable habitats and microtopography.

Conservation within a larger network also enables better management of these communities to reach their highest ecological value. Conservation of this property will support adjacent conservation land managers in their efforts to use large-scale land management techniques such as prescribed burning.

CONSERVE

Nearly 1,000 acres of the Boiling Spring Lakes Wetland Complex natural area will be conserved in perpetuity. This exceptionally-rated natural area includes pocosin, pond pine and wet savanna natural communities. Some of these natural communities are fire-dependent and larger conservation areas enable prescribed burning to enhance management of these communities.

Additionally, this area supports water quality for Brunswick County. The wetlands on the northern part of the property serve as the headwaters to Orton Creek, a tributary of the Cape Fear River.

Several groundwater wells that supply water to nearby residents are also located within the project area. Conserving the site will help protect water quality of the underlying Castle Hayne Aquifer, which lacks a confining soil layer that would normally prevent contamination of the groundwater.

HABITAT

Numerous federal- and state-listed species will benefit from this project. Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, a federally-endangered species, rely on pine savanna habitat, a natural community that is fire-dependent. Adjacent conservation properties actively manage for this species and expanding conservation nearby will help support large-scale management.

The project area also supports Venus flytraps, a charismatic, carnivorous plant species found only in the sandhills and Coastal Plain longleaf pine habitats of the Carolinas. Venus flytraps have captured the wonder of naturalists all the way back to Charles Darwin in 1875, who was the first to describe insectivorous plants. Other carnivorous plants are prevalent throughout the site, including pitcher plants and sundews.

Other notable species that occur at this site include the Eastern Painted Bunting, Bachman’s Sparrow, and black swamp-snake.

About Boiling Spring Wilderness

In late 2018, Unique Places to Save accepted a land donation of over 400-acres of globally-ranked natural heritage and wildlife habitat areas within the Boiling Spring Wilderness (“BSW”) complex in Brunswick County, North Carolina.

The larger BSW complex, at 2,747 acres (4.29 square miles), is a massive conservation area. It directly abuts the ~7,926-acre Boiling Spring Lakes Plant Conservation Preserve, protected by the North Carolina Plant Conservation Program and the ~973-acre Orton Plantation conservation tract owned by The Nature Conservancy and held under conservation easement with the NC Coastal Land Trust. BSW comprises approximately 10% of the 28,108-acre (43.9 square mile) Boiling Springs Lakes Wetland Complex Natural Heritage Area, as designated by North Carolina Natural Heritage Program. This Natural Heritage Area (NHA) is ranked “R1/C1 - Exceptional” - the highest possible ranking for an NHA in the state.

Unique Places to Save has many potential plans for our 400 acres within the BSW complex. We will be working with neighboring landowners, government agencies and conservation groups to further enhance the natural heritage components of our land and the larger BSW complex. To start, we expect to conduct biological surveys and other land management and restoration activities.