National Great Outdoors Month

National Great Outdoors Month is celebrated in June and serves as a reminder to enjoy and appreciate our state parks and wildlife refuges. This observation, begun in 1998, encourages us to explore our parks and enjoy the beauty that awaits us in our natural world.

National Great Outdoors Month is celebrated in June and serves as a reminder to enjoy and appreciate our state parks and wildlife refuges. This observation, begun in 1998, encourages us to explore our parks and enjoy the beauty that awaits us in our natural world.

Sandy Point (S.C.) Stop 1
Episode 1

Video

In this episode of NatureScene, Rudy and Jim comb the beaches of Sandy Point, just northeast of Charleston, S.C. Sandy Point is part of the Cape Romaine National Wildlife Refuge. The most common shell...
Sandy Point (S.C.) Stop 2
Episode 3

Video

The Florida horse conch is the largest gastropod one would find around the beaches of Sandy Point. The Atlantic murex is a gastropod which features blunt, but large spines on its shell. The Atlantic...
Sandy Point (S.C.) Stop 1
Episode 2

Video

Mixed in with the sea shells found on the beach, Rudy and Jim come across part of a Loggerhead sea turtle’s shell, a Skate egg case, known as a “Devil’s Purse,” a Vase sea sponge, a Hard-shelled clam...
Sandy Point (S.C.) Stop 2
Episode 5

Video

This area close by, once an oyster bed, has been covered in sand and is now a beach. A shrimping boat is seen out in the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. The area has around 280 registered species of...
Sandy Point (S.C.) Stop 3
Episode 6

Video

Clench’s Helmet is a univalve which feeds on echinoderms, like sand dollars. We see two shells which look very similar to each other, but actually come from different animals: a Knobbed whelk, and a...
Sandy Point (S.C.) Stop 2
Episode 4

Video

The Horseshoe crab which Rudy and Jim find is not dead, but is actually a shed exoskeleton! They also find whelk egg cases, and one of them still has young snails inside. Oyster shells are found...
Peachtree Rock (S.C.) Stop 7
Episode 10

Video

Rudy and Jim talk about some of the species of shrub which grow here: Rosemary and Sand Myrtle. Young Longleaf pines, False Foxglove, lichens, Bluejack oak, and Spiked moss also do well in low...
Peachtree Rock (S.C.) Stop 5
Episode 7

Video

Peachtree Rock – Rudy and Jim visit the actual rock in which the area gets its name. Contrary to popular belief, it is not actually a rock, but merely a large outcropping of sand held together by iron...
Peachtree Rock (S.C.) Stop 6
Episode 8

Video

Further up the trail where the area has less moisture, we see Turkey Oaks and Longleaf Pines make a return. Sparkleberry, Blazing Star, and Jointweed flowers are common in this area. On one of the...
Peachtree Rock (S.C.) Stop 2
Episode 2

Video

While walking along the trail, Rudy and Jim find a Fence Lizard resting on a tree trunk. Its camouflage skin is perfect for blending in with its environment, making it difficult for predators to spot...