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Dionaea Muscipula - The Venus Fly Trap

Did you know that the Venus Fly Trap is a native plant to South Carolina? For the more adventurous at heart, you can learn all about insect-eating plants with a visit to the Museum’s Carnivorous Plant Bog Garden. The Garden displays three different kinds of carnivorous plants found in the Lowcountry, including Venus, Sundews, and several species of Pitcher plants, each with their own unique method of trapping insects. Along with a visit to the Camellia Garden, this unique attraction should top your list of Hilton Head Island learning experiences.

FUN FACTS

Dionaea muscipula - the Venus Fly Trap
Over 12,000 flies take their last flight to the bog garden annually.
The snapping traps are typically 2–3 cm.
The largest, the "B-52" can reportedly produce trapping leaves up to 5.7 cm (2.2 in) long.
It can take a Venus flytrap three to five days to digest an organism, and it may go months between meals.

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BEACH
DISCOVERY TOUR

Join a museum naturalist on a nature tour of the wonders and creatures that inhabit our local beaches. Ever wonder who lives in those holes in the sand? Or, when sea turtles come ashore to nest on Hilton Head Island? Learn about the horseshoe crab that has been lurking in our coastal waters for millions of years. Come explore our ever-changing marine environment at hidden Fish Haul Beach along Port Royal Sound. With its mud flats and sandy areas, this beach is ideal for finding beach creatures, shorebirds, and sea shells. Learn about how our beaches are formed and changed with each cycle of the tide. Meet docent at the picnic tables near the beach pathway for an orientation before heading to the beach.

BIRDING
AT PINCKNEY ISLAND

Tour participants will be guided through a walking tour of Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge by an experienced bird watcher. With a combination of natural habitats including Salt Marsh, Maritime Forest and open fields, the site allows participants to see many different species of birds. Depending on the season, diverse birds can be spotted: Summer Tanager, Eastern Kingbird, Painted Bunting, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Egrets, Herons and many, many others.

EXPLORING
PINCKNEY ISLAND

Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge, located at the northern tip of Hilton Head Island, is a unique location full of Lowcountry history and natural beauty. This tour explores three different habitats: the Salt Marsh, the Maritime Forest, and a fresh water lagoon. The island’s Ibis Pond lagoon is known for its active wading-bird rookery which offers great bird watching opportunities between April and August. The island is also rich in cultural history and was home to General Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, a signer of the United States Constitution.

FORTS
OF PORT ROYAL

During the Civil War, Hilton Head Island was occupied by Union forces early in November 1861. The island’s proximity to Charleston and Savannah made it an important strategic location for the Union and was occupied throughout the War. On this guided history tour, learn about the Battle of Port Royal and the historic sites of Fort Walker and a later era Steam Cannon used for coastal defense.

HILTON HEAD
PEDEGO TOUR

There is no better way to experience Hilton Head Island than on a comfortable seat of a Pedego Electric Bike. Hilton Head is simply a Pedego Paradise and these state-of-the-art bikes allow riders to travel further, faster and breeze through the bike trails. The Hilton Head Pedego will cruise along flat bike paths and explore the special gems of the Island.

UNCOVERING
THE ROOTS OF RECONSTRUCTION

A partnership with the Coastal Discovery Museum, Hilton Head Island Land Trust and the Mitchelville Preservation Project offers a tour to visit two historic sites connected to the Civil War and Reconstruction eras on Hilton Head Island.

Visit the site of the self-governing community of Mitchelville (est. 1862) to learn about the Port Royal Experiment and how freedom and reconstruction impacted the new citizens who lived there. Nearby, join a guide for a tour of Fort Howell, built in 1864 to protect the town of Mitchelville. Learn about the 32nd U.S. Colored Infantry troops who built the fort, the methods used to construct it, and the importance of its preservation. Preservation Project.

EXPERIENCE THE LOWCOUNTRY UP CLOSE!

We are Official Guides for Santa Elena, The Butterfly Museum and Horseshoe Crabs!

Santa Elena was the local god of Karnak (Luxor) and during the New Kingdom, when the princes of Thebes ruled Egypt, he became the preeminent state god, with a temple that reflected his status. At the height of its power, the temple owned 421,000 head of cattle.

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