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Natural Treasures: Wynyah Bay, Pee Dee River Basin

North Inlet - Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Aerial view of meandering tidal creeks and extensive pristine marshes in North Inlet Estuary. Vicinity of Georgetown, South Carolina.
NOAA Photo Library/Flickr

  Dr. Maria Whitehead is Project Director of Winyah Bay and Pee Dee River Basin for The Nature Conservancy. Winyah Bay is comprised of 525,000 total acres and encompasses the lower drainage of the Black, Big Pee Dee, Little Pee Dee, Sampit, and Waccamaw rivers.

This vital watershed sustains 123,000 acres of forested wetlands and 23,000 acres of tidal freshwater marshes that support the annual use of up to 40,000 migratory waterfowl, 6 federally threatened and endangered species, and numerous species of migratory songbirds. These wetlands and associated uplands are of national significance. In collaboration with the Winyah Bay Task Force, The Nature Conservancy has also protected Sandy Island, located in Winyah Bay.

All Stations: Fri, Oct 30, 12 pm | News Sations: Sun, Nov 01, 4 pm

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Dr. Walter Edgar has two programs on South Carolina Public Radio: Walter Edgar's Journal, and South Carolina from A to Z. Dr. Edgar received his B.A. degree from Davidson College in 1965 and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1969. After two years in the army (including a tour of duty in Vietnam), he returned to USC as a post-doctoral fellow of the National Archives, assigned to the Papers of Henry Laurens.