Audubon Onward!
AUDUBON’S IMPACT IN SOUTH CAROLINA
Audubon Onward!
DEAR FRIENDS,
This report invites you to look more closely at our collective impact over the past year to protect birds and the places they need in South Carolina. Audubon Onward! provides important updates and conservations gains through our forward-looking plan to address the mounting threats of climate change and biodiversity loss—threats that not only impact birds, but people and the planet, too. The following pages underscore an urgency of now, and Audubon’s bold response.
Over the past half-century, we have lost 3 billion birds in North America—an alarming trend skewed heavily toward migratory species. This precipitous loss is a powerful statement about the condition of our planet and a harbinger of things to come if we don’t act strategically and decisively.
Here in South Carolina, birds like the Black Rail, Prothonotary Warbler, Red Knot, and Red-cockaded Woodpecker face a dire future if the current pace of climate change continues. These iconic species are among dozens that are likely to disappear from the Palmetto State in most of our lifetimes if we do not scale our work to meet the size and severity of these threats. It is this urgency that led us to launch our Flight Plan, Audubon’s bold five-year strategic plan, which codifies our evolution into a truly hemispheric organization.
Flight Plan is about protecting birds, and at the same time, protecting people and our planet by advancing a generation-shaping agenda to the forefront of conservation.
Beyond boundaries and across vast distances, most migratory birds only spend a fraction of their annual cycle in our state. To protect them, we need to literally meet them where they are. By studying their migrations and extensive breeding ranges, we can zero in with precision to address the dizzying array of conservation challenges they face.
It is your investment and our shared impact in South Carolina that will allow us to achieve hemispheric outcomes—this is how we will bend the bird curve.
Sincerely,
Rebecca Haynes VICE PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AUDUBON SOUTH CAROLINA
BIRDS TELL US. THIS IS HOW WE LISTEN.
Thanks to evolving technologies and game-changing science, Audubon is bridging knowledge gaps that have long challenged bird conservation efforts.
Take the Lesser Yellowlegs, for example: a medium-sized shorebird that embarks on an astonishing 20,000-mile round trip on its migration between Canada’s Boreal Forest and South America each year. Last year,
four Lesser Yellowlegs, originally tagged with radio transmitters in Colombia’s Cauca Valley, flew past Audubon-installed Motus towers in Michigan and Pennsylvania on their vast journey. The data collected from these four individuals offers a rare glimpse into the species’ awe-inspiring migration—and reveals insights that are critical to ensuring their safe passage and
survival—including where, when, and how long they use certain habitats to rest and feed.
Audubon is capturing similarly vital data from its Motus tower network in South Carolina, which includes 14 towers strategically located across the state, and a 15th tower currently underway at Claflin University in Orangeburg thanks to a partnership with Nemours Wildlife Foundation.
2024 State Impact Report
Audubon’s Flight Plan:
A Powerful and Dynamic Story of Migration Science, Climate Action, and Community Building
OUR SCIENCE IS CLEAR. We are in a critical moment for birds, people, and the planet. Climate change and biodiversity loss have reached crisis levels, yet the window of opportunity remains open—if we act now.
The most ambitious strategic effort in our history, Audubon’s Flight Plan, establishes our vision for shaping a world where birds and people thrive, elevating Audubon as a global conservation leader. Flight Plan sets five-year milestones in key areas to track progress towards our long-term vision to “bend the bird curve,” in other words, to halt and reverse the alarming decline of birds.
Our recognition of the interconnectedness of people, place, and climate led to the development of four milestones we intend to reach over the next five years: Habitat Conservation, Climate, Policy, and Community Building.
MILESTONES:
Flight Plan harnesses the full power of Audubon—including on-the-ground staff across the Western Hemisphere, centers and sanctuaries, and local chapter partners—by focusing on a set of shared outcomes for greater collective impact towards our vision.
HABITAT CONSERVATION
Using science to identify, protect, and conserve 300 million acres of bird habitat across the Americas
CLIMATE ACTION
Deploying 100 gigawatts of renewable energy and storing 30 billion tons of carbon through natural climate solutions
POLICY LEADERSHIP
Pairing diplomacy with advocacy to develop and implement bird-friendly solutions
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Creating a diverse network of bird lovers working together to advance our shared vision
Red-winged Blackbirds.
Photo: Gary Leka/Audubon Photography Awards
AUDUBON’S HEMISPHERIC APPROACH
TO CONSERVATION directs our efforts to the places where birds need us most and to all the places they call home; their seasonal migration across the Western Hemisphere means Audubon also works from boreal Canada to the Carolinas to Chile and beyond. Prothonotary
Audubon’s Bird Migration Explorer provides a clearerthan-ever look at bird migration and the incredible journey of individual species. Here we see how the iconic Prothonotary Warbler requires us to work beyond our borders to ensure it remains safe and healthy throughout its annual cycle.
ILLUSTRATON: DAVID ALLEN SIBLEY
In the past year, we have made progress towards our milestones—much of which has touched down in our state— and developed operational plans to continue driving this work forward.
Guided by our Flight Plan, Audubon is engaging in conservation on 116,650,000 acres and influencing 50 renewable energy generation and transmission projects totaling 34 gigawatts— enough energy to power roughly 25 million homes.
HIGHLIGHTS OVER THE PAST YEAR INCLUDE EFFORTS TO:
• Launch Audubon’s Conservation Ranching Program in Wisconsin, building on our success in fourteen other states where more than 100 ranches covering nearly 3 million acres have earned status as Audubon Certified birdfriendly land.
• Fund seven new projects for protected areas in Perú and six in Bolivia through Conserva Aves, totaling over 1.9 million acres.
• Break ground on the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, the singlelargest ecosystem restoration project in U.S. history; this project will restore and strengthen up to 28,000 acres of wetlands in Louisiana, providing climate resiliency benefits to local communities.
• Begin new engagement on a $10 billion transmission project spanning seven Midwestern states representing up to 20 gigawatts.
• Deliver 10,000 acrefeet of water to benefit Great Salt Lake and Jordan River through local partnerships and co-management of the Great Salt Lake Watershed Enhancement Trust.
• Convene 11 Indigenous Guardians and leaders from five First Nations, key partners on our work in Canada, at Hog Island Audubon Camp in Maine for knowledge exchange and training opportunities.
South Carolina is leading Audubon’s Flight Plan by amplifying community voices, forging key partnerships, and implementing innovative conservation efforts that align with our vision to create connected, climate-resilient areas across the state and hemisphere for maximum impact.
Tracked Bird
Audubon’s Work in South Carolina. Unified by the Power of Birds.
Through our Flight Plan, we are committed to achieving measurable progress on milestones that address the climate and biodiversity crises. We are pleased to report that your investment supported the following impact this year:
HABITAT CONSERVATION
Conserving quality, connected, and climate-resilient bird habitat
➜ Protected more than 400,000 acres across coastal, wetland, and forested habitats, including more than 32,000 acres of Audubon-managed lands.
➜ Stewarded 85 acres of priority coastal bird habitat with the help of 300 Audubontrained Shorebird Stewards through sign posting, education, and monitoring, directly contributing to the health and resilience of South Carolina’s coastal ecosystems.
➜ Supported wetland restoration at the Tibwin Wetland Management Complex in Francis Marion National Forest in collaboration with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ducks Unlimited, enhancing habitat for the federally threatened Eastern Black Rail and other marsh species.
➜ Supported Beaufort County’s historic $1 million investment to conserve 4,400 acres in neighboring Jasper County. The project—which was made possible thanks to the passage of the Audubonbacked County Green Space Sales Tax Act and a subsequent successful county-wide referendum—will protect vital habitat for Saltmarsh Sparrows and other marsh species, while preserving the area’s water quality, rural character, and flood mitigation potential.
➜ Supported efforts to advance Dorchester County Greenbelt funding and subsequent development and passage of the Greenbelt Master Plan, safeguarding more than 365,000 acres of habitat in one of South Carolina’s fastestgrowing counties.
Black Skimmers.
Photo: Walker Golder
Accelerating renewable energy and restoring forests, grasslands, and wetlands
➜ Facilitated 780 acres of landowner easements and implemented restoration projects on Audubonand privately-owned lands, including bottomland hardwood/longleaf pine restoration, bird-friendly forest management, wildflower meadow restoration, and wetland improvements.
➜ Completed an Engineering With Nature® report with Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge and EA Engineering to determine initial design options for barrier island restoration to increase resilience within the refuge for the benefit of wildlife and neighboring communities alike.
POLICY LEADERSHIP
Advancing our Healthy Birds, Healthy Planet policy agenda
➜ Played a key role in passing the Working Agricultural Lands Preservation Act (H.3951), which establishes a fund within the South Carolina Conservation Bank to help South Carolina farmers preserve their lands through voluntary conservation easements, while protecting critical habitat for grassland birds like Northern Bobwhite and Eastern Meadowlark.
➜ Supported the passage of H.5246, designating the Brown Pelican as the official state seabird—raising awareness about the impacts of human disturbance on coastal birds and the importance of protecting coastal ecosystems.
➜ Opposed the South Carolina Ten-Year Energy Transformation Act (H.5118), which sought to fast-track construction of a large natural gas plant by bypassing regulatory oversight and eliminating critical consumer and environmental protections. Advocacy by Audubon supporters and testimony from
➜ Launched a new climate-friendly restoration project in Calhoun County and hosted a landowner field day with Clemson Cooperative Extension and the Longleaf Alliance to showcase the 155-acre demonstration site, which will be gradually restored to longleaf pine while retaining a loblolly pine overstory to demonstrate carbon retained through the process.
staff and partners helped secure revisions to the legislation, ultimately delaying further action on the bill before the legislative session ended in May.
➜ Advocated for statewide wetland protections after the US Supreme Court’s Sackett decision, which limited federal protections for certain wetlands under the Clean Water Act, with a goal of reintroducing legislation to protect South Carolina’s sensitive wetlands in 2025.
Audubon and partners join Governor Henry McMaster for a ceremonial bill signing to celebrate the passage of the Working Agricultural Lands Preservation Act (H.3951). Photo: South Carolina Conservation Bank
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Working together across the hemisphere to advance our shared vision
Audubon and supporters host a virtual ceremony to announce a partnership between Beidler Forest Sanctuary and Ciénaga de Mallorquín Ecopark in
➜ Celebrated the 50th anniversary of Audubon’s Sanctuary at Francis Beidler Forest and World Migratory Bird Day with more than 250 community members, staff, and partners at Beidler’s newly renovated education and conservation action center.
➜ Established a sister partnership between Beidler Forest and Ciénaga de Mallorquín Ecopark in Barranquilla, Colombia, supporting the hemispheric protection of Prothonotary Warblers and other priority bird species.
Barranquilla, Colombia—which aims to strengthen hemispheric efforts to conserve priority bird species.
Photo: Sydney Walsh/Audubon
➜ Expanded support for South Carolina Native American Indian Tribes and their land protection goals, including an agreement to comanage an Edisto River property with the Edisto Natchez-Kusso Tribe.
➜ Began major renovations at our Silver Bluff Sanctuary, which include a new event barn and wildflower meadow at the main campus, as well as critical infrastructure updates including a new drinking well and electrical repairs to the sanctuary’s Kathwood Stork Ponds.
➜ Supported Audubon’s Charleston chapter, the Charleston Natural History Society, in passing prescribed fire resolutions in Charleston and Dorchester Counties, promoting safer land management practices for fire-dependent species like the Red-cockaded Woodpecker and Bobwhite Quail.
➜ Deployed nanotags on Baltimore Orioles in coordination with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, provided nanotag design training for a Wood Thrush pilot project, advanced the use of barometric geolocators to track Prothonotary Warblers as a Project PROTHO collaborator, and engaged volunteers in community science efforts including Painted Bunting and Purple Martin banding.
From bird banding to longstanding community science projects, Audubon is leading the way on game-changing science to strengthen hemispheric conservation efforts for priority species like the Prothonotary Warbler.
Photo: Sydney Walsh/Audubon
We are deeply grateful for your continued commitment to Audubon and our mission to protect birds and the places they need—in South Carolina and beyond. In the first year of Flight Plan, we have made significant progress towards our habitat and climate milestones. We could not have gained such momentum without you. The challenge before us is clear. Act now or risk a future with skies silenced with loss. With your help, we will bend the bird curve and make a sustainable impact for birds across the hemisphere. This is our moment
CONTACTS
Rebecca Haynes VICE PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR rebecca.haynes@audubon.org
Maggie Kalergis DIRECTOR, LEADERSHIP GIVING maggie.kalergis@audubon.org
OUR OFFICES
Charleston (Administrative) 125 Wappoo Creek Drive Building G, Suite 214 Charleston, SC 29412
Columbia 808 Lady St. Suite D, Office 13 Columbia, SC 29201
sc.audubon.org
Wood Thrush. Photo: Lance Leonhardt/Audubon Photography Awards
Cover: Prothonotary Warbler
Photo: Peter Brannon/Audubon Photography Awards