Tropical Storm Debby slams popular Port Royal rookery. Here’s how the birds fared

Tropical Storm Debby tore through Port Royal’s famed Cypress Wetlands and Rookery, leaving it littered with downed trees and prompting the closure of its main entrance. Each year, thousands of birds and birdwatchers flock to the swamp, which is located right off the town’s main street.

How are the beloved birds and the multitude of species that nest in the trees, including egrets, storks and ibis, surviving in the wake of Debby’s drenching?

Soggy, but “They fared pretty well,” said Jenn Clementoni, a master naturalist who serves on the board of the Friends of Cypress Wetlands, a not-for-profit provides education about the wetlands and bird rookery,

Falling tree limbs, however, did damage wooden fencing that lines the boardwalk and the water level is “very high.”

As a result of that damage, the main entrance to the Cypress Wetlands amphitheater and boardwalk, located off off of Paris Avenue, has been closed until further notice, Friends of Cypress Wetlands announced on Facebook.

“It’s just some trees down and some washouts,” Town Manager Van Willis told the Beaufort Gazette and Island Packet, describing the damage as minor.

The town will work with its landscape contractor and Friends of Cypress Wetlands to clean it up.

However, the wetlands can still be accessed from less high-trafficked locations located on 16th or 17th streets.

The sanctuary is unique in that a boardwalk cuts right through the heart of the swamp, giving visitors and birdwatchers a front-row seat to watch birds nest and roost in the trees.

Debby had dumped up to 11 inches of rain on the area through Tuesday, and the water level at the wetland remains high. But Clementoni says she has seen no signs of injuries or major disruption to the birds that nest in the trees.

She noted that nesty season at the wetland is actually “pretty far along” so there are not as many birds at the site as there are earlier in the season.

In the second half of nesting season, which is underway now, white ibis begin showing up in higher numbers in June and July. In the first part of the nesting season, about 10 species of birds including great egrets, wood storks and tricolored herons arrive in the spring.

This story was originally published August 7, 2024 at 10:49 AM.

Karl Puckett

The Island Packet

843-256-3420

Karl Puckett covers the city of Beaufort, town of Port Royal and other communities north of the Broad River for The Beaufort Gazette and Island Packet. The Minnesota native also has worked at newspapers in his home state, Alaska, Wisconsin and Montana.