Supporting Developers, Engineers & Environmental Resource Managers
Wetlands Species QALC³ Keeps an Eye Out For
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) - Unlisted Status
The Great Blue Heron is the largest heron in North America. Frequently seen in almost any wetland habitat, from small ponds to marshes, they are common and widespread throughout North and Central America. They are not yet endangered, because their natural wetland habitat is federally protected by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). They are always a pleasure to share a few days in a wetland with.
Relict Trillium (Trillium reliquum) - Extinction Status
Known to occur less than 80 times and in only a few locations in Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama, relict trillium was listed endangered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in 1988. This sessile trillium is a Spring ephemeral, blooming from early March through April and occurs in rich, mixed-deciduous forests on slopes, bluffs, stream-flats, and floodplains. This species is of high conservation concern to USACE and all occurrences will be protected, less it become a relic.
Red Cockaded Woodpecker - (Picoides borealis) - Endangered Status
These birds have large white patches on their cheeks, black neck and heads, white bellies, and barred black and white backs. The red-cockade (males), consists of a small red streak above the cheek and is rarely visible. They have disappeared from many areas of former occurrence, with ongoing decline documented in several regions. Total population perhaps under 10,000, many of these in isolated groups facing local extinction.
The American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) Nuisance Status
Alligators occupy a variety of wetland habitats in Georgia. They are found in marshes, swamps, rivers, farm ponds and lakes in the wild, but also have been found in ditches, neighborhoods, drainage canals, roadways, golf course ponds and sometimes in swimming pools. During the courtship and breeding season, April to May, alligators prefer open waters. During the remainder of the year, males prefer open and deep waters while females seek out nesting habitat in shallow, heavily vegetated and secluded backwater wetland areas. We watch out for these guys, so We don't become endangered.
