Field Trips
Field Trips are open to all registered attendees of Botany 2016 including spouses/companions and family members. (They must pay full trip registration fee.) All trips require pre-registration and are on a first-come and first-served basis. Fees include transportation, admission fees, field guides (if provided), water and where indicated, lunch. All trips will have knowledgeable guides to be sure you experience the botany of the area to the fullest!
Schedule subject to change...you will be notified by email. when registering please indicate your first and second choices. All efforts will be given to give your your first choice, and you will be notified before the conference.
Fees for Field Trips are non-refundable if cancelled after July 1, 2016. All trips will leave from the Convention Center by bus.
Overview
Saturday, July 30
FT 12 8:00 am - 3:30 pm Full Day - AFS - Lowcountry Fern Foray
FT 1 8:30 am - 4:00 pm Full Day - Altama Plantation Wildlife Management Area
CANCELED - FT 2 8:30 am - 4:00 pm Full Day - Plum Orchard Tract, Townsend Wildlife Management Area
FT 3 8:30 am - 4:00 pm Full Day - Little Tybee Kayak trip
FT 4 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Half Day - Cay Creek Nature Preserve
Sunday July 31
FT 5 8:00 am - 3:30 pm Full Day - ABLS Field Trip: Lichens & Bryophytes of the Savannah Area
CANCELED - FT 6 8:30 am - 4:00 pm Full Day - Hofwyl-Broadfield Historic Site Nature Trail
FT 7 8:30 am - 4:00 pm Full Day - Little Tybee kayak trip
CANCELED - FT 8 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Half Day - Ogeechee River Canal
FT 9 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Half Day - Botany in Action - Mother Mathilda Beasley Park
CANCELED - FT 10 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Half Day - Forsyth Park
FT11 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Half Day - Bonaventure Cemetary
Field Trip Details
FT 12 AFS Lowcountry Fern Foray
Full Day Saturday, July 30, 8:00 am – 3:30pm – $120.00
This full-day fern foray will begin with a morning spent on Spring Island, South Carolina. Spring Island is a 3,000-acre nature preserve and island residential community that is home to over 600 plant species. We’ll visit a diversity of habitats, including bottomland hardwoods, mixed forest, mesic slopes, and managed sites where prescribed burns are being used to restore longleaf pine habitats. Then, we’ll explore a small portion of the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, which includes bottomland hardwoods, tidal freshwater marshes, and 3,000 acres of freshwater impoundments that are managed for migratory birds and waterfowl; the impoundments were formerly rice fields during the 18th and 19th centuries. We’ll travel the four-mile Wilderness Drive through the impoundments, and although we won’t see ferns along that drive, we’re likely to observe dozens of alligators and other interesting wildlife. Our field trip will conclude with a hike through floodplain forests at Savannah-Ogeechee Canal Museum and Nature Center. Ferns abound along the historic locks and along the boardwalk through cypress swamps. Wear sturdy shoes and be prepared for heat, humidity, and insect pests. Perfect field conditions for a fern foray!
FT1 Altama Plantation Wildlife Management Area
Full Day Saturday July, 30 8:30 – 4:00 pm - $120.00
Longleaf pine sandhills and flatwoods, Altamaha River freshwater tidal swamp forest, isolated wetlands, maritime forest; 1 hour from Savannah.
Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided
FT2 Plum Orchard Tract, Townsend Wildlife Management Area
Full Day Saturday July, 30 8:30 – 4:00 pm - $120.00
Longleaf pine sandhills, longleaf pine restoration projects; Altamaha River floodplain forests; 1 hour 15 min from Savannah.
Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided
FT3 Little Tybee Kayak Trip
Full Day Saturday July, 30 8:30 – 4:00 pm $265.00
Exact time will be dependent on tide – we will notify you before the trip via email. Visit salt marsh, marsh hammocks. This wilderness gem showcases rich coastal salt marshes, pristine beaches, natural dunes and subtropical forests of live oak, pine and palm. Wildlife includes the egret, heron, white ibis and the endangered woodstork. Roseate spoonbills, ospreys and bald eagles are also often seen. Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided.
Half Day Saturday July, 30 9:00 – 12:00 pm $80.00
Coastal wetlands; 35 minutes from Savannah. Cay Creek Wetlands Interpretive Center is an excellent example of the transition from freshwater wetlands into saltwater wetlands, providing a unique opportunity for education and appreciation. The area is rich in diversity - Bay, Cypress, and Oak trees are abundant, as are Palms, Palmettos, and Magnolias. Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided
Sunday
FT5 Lichens & Bryophytes of the Savannah Area – Sponsored by ABLS
Full Day Sunday, July 31, 8:00 am – 3:30 pm - $100.00
Wormsloe State Historic Site is located on an ancient dune ridge, so the habitats are mesic to sub-xeric maritime forest elements, though disturbed by centuries of human history. Substrates will include live oak, sabal palm, loblolly pine and sandy soil. Over 150 species of lichens have been documented from this small park, but it is mostly unexplored for bryophytes. We will then travel to another historic area, the Savannah-Ogeechee Canal site, where we will experience a coastal swamp system. This site is terra incognita for lichens and bryophytes, so discoveries could be made. There is an approximate half-mile trail with some boardwalks. There are interesting bryophytes and lichens at both these stops, but both these parks will be of interest historically as well. Collecting will be possible at both sites, though we will avoid cambium-depth gouges on living trees, and any bark collecting immediately adjacent to trails.
Links to more information on sites: http://www.gastateparks.org/Wormsloe; http://parks.chathamcounty.org/Parks/Multipurpose-Trails/Old-Savannah-Ogeechee-Canal.
Trip will be lead by Malcolm Hodges who grew up in coastal Mississippi, and has a BA in Biology from Rice University and a Masters in Zoology from Mississippi State. He has worked for The Nature Conservancy in Georgia as a field biologist since 1992. His current interests include conservation management of threatened biota in the southeast; lichen systematics, distribution and conservation in Georgia; and just about anything to do with birds. He lives on a small farm in Riverdale, Georgia, with his partner, Keith Poole.
Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided
FT6 Hofwyl-Broadfield Historic Site Nature Trail
Full Day Sunday, July 31, 8:30 am – 4:00pm – 130.00
Longleaf pine flatwoods, carnivorous plants, maritime forest; freshwater tidal marsh; 1 hour from Savannah. The Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation was a plantation on the Altamaha River, in Glynn County, Georgia. It produced rice from 1800 until 1915, when growing rice became unprofitable. Then it was primarily a dairy farm until 1942. About 300 acres of high quality longleaf pine forest are also protected as part of the historic site. Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provide
FT7 Little Tybee Kayak Trip
Full Day Sunday July, 31 8:30 – 4:00 pm Price $265.00
Exact time will be dependent on tide – we will notify you before the trip via email. Visit salt marsh, marsh hammocks. This wilderness gem showcases rich coastal salt marshes, pristine beaches, natural dunes and subtropical forests of live oak, pine and palm. Wildlife includes the egret, heron, white ibis and the endangered woodstork. Roseate spoonbills, ospreys and bald eagles are also often seen. Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided.
FT8 Botany in Action
Half Day Sunday, July 31, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Botany in Action volunteers will join Savannah Tree Foundation for on Sunday morning at Mother Mathilda Beasley Park in downtown Savannah. This urban park is owned and managed by Chatham County Public Works Department and is used by neigbhors, sports teams and visitors. Completely restored in 2008, after a soil remediation project, the park now enjoys a functional wetland, athletic fields, dog park, community pavilion, playground and Mother Mathilda Beasley’s historic home.
Volunteers will help weed around the various wetland area tree species, possibly spread mulch and work to further beautify this park. Volunteers should wear closed-toe shoes and long pants, and expect to be hot and sweaty. Sun hats are encouraged. Project will be Sunday, July 31, leaving the Center at 9:00 am. Continental breakfast, water bottles, t-shirts and lunch and transportation will be provided.
The Savannah Tree Foundation’s mission is to preserve, protect, and plant canopy trees in Chatham County, Georgia.
Through direct action and education, the Savannah Tree Foundation promotes an awareness of trees as vital environmental resources and an important part of our cultural heritage. Founded in 1982, the Savannah Tree Foundation is the oldest urban and community forestry organization in the State of Georgia. For more information visit www.SavannahTree.com.
FT9 Ogeechee River Canal
Half Day Sunday, July 31, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm - $85.00
Blackwater swamp forest; 20 min from Savannah. A museum & nature center featuring information and exhibits on Canal history, archeology, birding, and local attractions. Over 2 miles of hiking trails from the SO Canal Museum and Nature Center to the Ogeechee River. Trails include historic canal towpath and Locks, a river trail, Georgia wetland walks along boardwalks and Sandhill/Pine forest trails. Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided
FT10 Forsyth Park
Half Day Sunday, July 31, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm - $80.00
Urban forest, landscaped plantings; walkable in downtown Savannah. Forsyth Park is the largest park in the historic district of Savannah Georgia. The Park covers 30 acres of land just south of Gaston Street and north of Park Avenue. Forsyth Park was laid out in the 1840’s. The land for the original space was donated by William Hodgson. In 1851 John Forsyth, the 33rd Governor of Georgia donated an additional 20 acres, bring the total size of Forsyth Park to its present size. Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided
FT11 Bonaventure Cemetery
Half Day Sunday, July 31, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm - $80.00
Urban forest; 10 minutes from downtown Savannah. Bonaventure Cemetery is a public cemetery located on a scenic bluff of the Wilmington River, east of Savannah, Georgia. The cemetery became famous when it was featured in the 1994 novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt, and in the movie, directed by Clint Eastwood, based on the book. It is the largest of the city's municipal cemeteries, containing nearly 160 acres. Dress for very warm weather – Continental Breakfast, Box lunch and water provided