AUGUSTA, GA - Augusta is home to many things: the James Brown legacy, the Masters Tournament, the boyhood home of Woodrow Wilson and final resting place of several signers of the Declaration of Independence. This is the place where Ray Charles made his famous stand against segregation at Bell Auditorium under the shadow of the Confederate Powder Works Chimney nearby.

The city has always called itself the Garden City, but now Augustans and people from all over the Southeast are discovering that Augusta is home to so much more than people. There have been two notable bear sightings in recent years, as well as stories told about a legendary 100-pound wild cat.

While these certainly aren’t the norm, many other wild animals share Augusta with their human neighbors. The difference is, three years ago, only a handful of people knew of the natural wonders of the Augusta Canal and Savannah River Corridor. The elderly lady with a cane fishing pole who shows up weekly to snap up catfish out of the canal near Lake Olmstead has probably always noticed the wildlife, but, lately, she’s likely noticed the sudden appearance of bikers, hikers, kayakers and folks out for a stroll with the family dog.

Thanks to the work of volunteers who have joined me in forming the First Saturday Crew, much of the natural area along the famous waterways is clean of litter and is now attracting crowds. Across town, Phinizy Swamp has become a bookend, so to speak, for nature lovers and remains a pristine location teeming with wildlife.

Visitors to Aqueduct Park, Whitewater Park, Hammonds Ferry, Phinizy Swamp and other areas that are loosely being called Outdoor Augusta are now being introduced to the abundance of critters that call the Savannah River home. In the Augusta/North Augusta riverfront area, it is possible to watch alligators in the wild and then take a leisurely stroll into a vibrant urban downtown district and have dinner.

So what all is wild in Augusta?

Pendleton King Park, located off of Kissingbower Road, is a bird sanctuary where one can find all kinds of interesting species amid the hydrangea gardens and dog parks. However, if you want to see the raptors, head down to the river. During dusk and dawn hours you will hear the distinctive sound of the Barred Owl. During the day, the Red-Shouldered and Red-Tailed Hawks prowl the skies for food. Those raptors tend to put on fascinating displays when smaller birds engage in the act of “mobbing,” that is, chasing the predator birds away from their nests by creating a riot in the sky. Now, if you see two hawks engaging in similar behavior, they are not fighting, but rather, doing the nasty, so to speak. Hawks have a very intricate and elaborate mating dance that takes place in mid-flight, so look upwards, but not for too long.

The Great Blue Heron and the Great Egret are also fixtures along the Savannah River Corridor. These long-legged wading birds love human contact and will wait until a canoe is almost on top of them before spreading their giant wings and soaring off into the sky.

There is a heron living in the canopy above Whitewater Park that loves to taunt kayakers by swooping down low over the boat, then landing on a forward tree branch with its head cocked, waiting for the boat to catch up where she continues her little game.

“Another interesting bird is the Prothonotary Warbler, a bright yellow songbird that migrates to the area while it is warm,” says Department of Natural Resources biologist Tim Keys. This interesting little bird sings to people visiting her habitat until winter arrives and she is forced to move south.

Along the open areas of the first level of the canal at dusk you might think you are seeing small birds flapping away in a frenzy, but what you see are not birds at all, but bats. The city of Augusta has trucks that drive around in the evening spraying mosquito insecticide, but the bats over the canal eat more of those pests each evening than all the trucks kill combined. No need to worry, there have been no reports of humans being attacked by the canal bats.

Another interesting mammal that occasionally comes out during the day is the beaver.

“We were disappointed to find that the beavers had created dams all across the second level when the canal was emptied of water earlier this year,” says First Saturday Crew volunteer Andy Cheek. “In fact, we thought all those dams would delay opening the whitewater course for at least a year.”

Those fears would prove to be unfounded. Cheek says the animal they originally thought to be a nuisance turned out to be a helper.

After consulting with experts, it was decided to cut small trenches in the dams, rather than destroy them altogether. The result was an even more dramatic thrill ride through the whitewater course (for safety purposes, the author notes that Whitewater Park will not open until next year). It can be said that the beavers helped build Whitewater Park for the humans.

These creatures can sometimes be seen foraging around the Rae’s Creek spillway. Beavers look like adorable little plush toys, but don’t take the dare and put your hand inside one of their burrow holes. Those cute little animals have a ferocious temper.

Aqueduct Park is a popular swimming attraction due to the cold spring waters that feed the lagoon, but most of the swimmers do not realize they are diving into an aquarium until they hit the water. Small fish nip at the heels of waders and turtles float lazily by as water snakes bask on the rocks that line the lagoon.

Snakes, you say? Yes. And the good news is that most, if not all of the snakes encountered at Aqueduct Park are harmless.

“Georgia has over 40 varieties of snakes and only six of those are poisonous,” Keys explains. Naturally, there are Cottonmouth Moccasins, Copperheads and even Rattlesnakes that roam outdoor Augusta, but most will run and hide at the sound of an approaching human. Harmless water snakes, on the other hand, will openly bathe and bask with people splashing in the water nearby.

According to Keys, if you see a snake in an overhanging tree branch while on a canoe ride, you shouldn’t fear, even if the snake gets spooked and falls into the boat with you.

Poisonous snakes indigenous to the region do not climb because their short and stubby bodies are not built for such activity.

Swimming in an area like Aqueduct Park is generally regarded as safe when it comes to reptiles; however, other parts of the Savannah should be treated with caution. In areas with little human activity, Cottonmouth Moccasins will nest and hunt for fish. These snakes can bite you underwater and will if they feel threatened. Moccasins will also hold their ground if encountered, but stories you hear of this species of snake chasing people down in order to bite them are myths. Studies conducted by the GDNR show that these snakes are as reluctant to defensively use their venom as most other North American pit vipers.

Another snake that has acquired a fearsome reputation is the Coral Snake and they are plentiful in the woods beyond the Savannah. Yet, again, the reputation is really more an urban legend. Coral snakes are tiny compared with most poisonous snakes. They do not have retractable fangs, meaning they have to gnaw their venom into you. Almost all bites by Coral snakes are the result of them being molested by people.

Corals are nocturnal, so it is advisable to carry a tent with an enclosed zippered façade if you intend to camp out along the Savannah. These snakes move toward heat and accidental bites do occur to sleeping individuals that roll over onto a snake that mistakenly finds its way into an unsecured tent. It is also important to note that while the law is largely not enforced, it is illegal to kill a non-poisonous snake in Georgia.

Snakes may have a powerful bite, but the real choppers belong to another Georgia reptile that is increasingly calling Augusta home: the alligator. Once threatened, the gator now is breeding in such numbers that offspring are beginning to test the waters north. It is not unusual to see alligators at Phinizy Swamp or over in North Augusta’s brick ponds in
Hammonds Ferry.

Like snakes, alligators have a natural fear of humans and tend to stay away. Years ago, a large gator was spotted in the third level of the canal near the site of the Judicial Center construction project. Authorities surmised the animal had made its way up from Phinizy Swamp and decided to simply leave it alone. Eventually the beast decided the better hunting grounds were in the opposite direction and headed back home.

Over in North Augusta, officials are proud of the restored natural areas near the brick ponds, but wince at the behavior of the ducks. When they spot humans, the ducks instinctively run up expecting food. While people may think it is fun to feed the fowl, experts like Keys say it is not a good idea.

First, bread that is processed for human consumption is actually harmful to the ducks’ digestive system, and it also creates a much larger problem. There is a pair of eyes peeking just above the surface of the brick ponds and they see the hand extend to the bill.

They begin to equate the hand with the delivery of food. They do not see a difference between the extended hand and the food being delivered. The hand might as well be the food. The fear of an upright standing human is supplanted by the instinct to hunt, to stalk and to eat. No one wants the tragedy of an alligator attack at the brick ponds, and so authorities are now all but begging people to refrain from feeding the wildlife, any wildlife, even the ducks, at the park.

The Savannah River area may be the natural habitat for the gator, but another predator, the bear, only comes into town for a visit every once in a while. Like gators, bears are recluses and generally do not like to mix with people. Yet, over the summer, a young Black Bear was spotted roaming all over Columbia County. Emergency Management Director Pam Tucker and her staff tracked the bear for several weeks and embarked on a public education campaign until it moved on out of the area.

“We are told by DNR that as many as four bears migrate through the area each year on their way to Gainesville or Macon where they eventually settle,” Tucker says. The bear ended up the subject of several photographs, but caused no trouble during his trip through Martinez and Evans. “He didn’t even turn over a single trash can,” brags Tucker. Like the managers of Brick Pond Park in North Augusta with their alligators, the Columbia County EMA office’s information campaign was geared to educate people to keep their distance for the safety of both human and animal.

Mayor Deke Copenhaver was the first to proclaim that Augusta would become a green city, and the abundance of wildlife only a stones throw from the urban area is an indication that Augusta is indeed becoming a natural Disney World. For people who watch, enjoy and plan their recreational activities around nature, it is becoming a Mecca. The birds, the bees, the snakes and even the gators don’t seem to mind having the humans around either.