Into the Wild

At first light in an old field, you may hear a clear two-note whistle: bobwhite quail. It is one of the most familiar sounds in the South, but the habitat behind that call is easy to overlook.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

Every now and then, a South Carolina river gives you a glimpse of something ancient. Atlantic sturgeon are long, powerful fish covered with rows of hard, bony plates instead of ordinary scales.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

I watched a wood stork feeding in a shallow wetland not long ago. It moved slowly, sweeping its open bill from side to side through the water.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

I was walking beside a Lowcountry tidal creek recently and noticed a rough line of oyster shell at the water's edge. It may not look like much from a distance, but an oyster reef is a living neighborhood.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

South Carolina is home to the Eastern wild turkey, and thanks to decades of conservation and restoration work, turkeys are now found in every county in the state. 

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

For a lot of kids, that first bluegill or small bass isn't just a fish - it's a first lesson in how ecosystems work. 

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

Every so often someone is surprised to hear that we have bears in South Carolina. But we do - and they're pretty incredible animals.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

Just after sunset on a summer evening, if you look up, you might see quick, darting shadows overhead. Those are bats - and they're some of the hardest-working wildlife in South Carolina.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

Most people don't think about what's under the surface of a river - but if you could see the river bottom clearly, you might find freshwater mussels sitting half-buried in the sand.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.

One summer evening I stepped outside and the trees were humming. Cicadas. Some species spend years underground as nymphs, feeding on tree roots before emerging all at once.

For more from Into the Wild, visit southcarolinapublicradio.org/intothewild.

For more information about the SC Department of Natural Resources, visit dnr.sc.gov.