Overview
Area name
Audubon Newhall PreserveArea Location
South Island. On Palmetto Bay Road between Sea Pines Circle and the Cross Island Bridge. There is a sign to the Preserve.Area Map
Access
Hours of Operation: Open in daylight hours.
Admission: Free though donations are welcome. Deeded to and maintained by the Hilton Head Island Audubon Society.
Facilities
- Parking area.
- Information board and leaflets.
- No restrooms.
- No water.
- Park benches.
- Nature trails.
- Guided walks in the spring and fall – check www.hiltonheadaudubon.org.
Background
- The Newhall Preserve is a place to see and study the vegetation of the island in a convenient, compact area encompassing pine/saw palmetto flatwoods, hardwoods and wetlands including a pond and a pocosin (ground-water wetland). Some endangered and rare plants have been collected and given a favorable environment here. Audubon volunteers maintain trailside labels to identify the numerous plant species found in the Preserve.
- The aerated pond with pier was restored in 1993. The area around the pond can be a productive birding spot for warblers and other migrants in the spring and fall.
- A pristine 50-acre preserve created by the founders of Sea Pines as a gift to prominent conservationist Caroline “Beany” Newhall. She created a fund for its maintenance and deeded it to the Hilton Head Island Audubon Society in 1976. The Society has maintained the Preserve ever since.
Key Birds
Resident
Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, White-eyed Vireo, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Pine Warbler, Eastern Towhee.
Spring
Warblers in migration. Ruby-throated Hummingbird.
Fall
Warblers in migration.
Winter
Yellow-rumped Warbler (abundant), Cedar Waxwing.