Private landowners who own wetlands or adjacent habitat play a critical role in conservation.  If you are interested in managing for the many benefits of Carolina Bays, the first step is to evaluate what habitats you have on your property (wetland and upland habitats), the condition of those habitats, and to clarify your land management goals (e.g. increase game species for hunting, reduce flooding, generate revenue, benefit rare species, etc).  When you have a clear understanding of where you are starting from and where you want to go, it can be helpful to develop a management plan to provide the “roadmap” of how to achieve your goals.  A management plan can also be helpful in qualifying for some cost share and tax relief programs.  Help with implementing your plan can come from cost share programs to reduce the cost, contractors to do work you are unable to do yourself, and biologists or foresters to help guide management.  Links to contacts that could help you initiate this process are at the bottom of this page.

Photo: Landowner receiving technical guidance, David Sawyer

What did your Carolina Bay look like hundreds of years ago? How have recent human activities changed the ability of your bay to hold floodwater or provide homes to wildlife and diverse plant communities? Every bay is unique, and thinking about the answers to these questions can help you understand what your bay needs.

Bays vary widely by their size, soil type, hydrology, plant and animal communities, and disturbance. There is no one-size-fits-all method to restoring or managing a bay. However, the following guidelines may help you determine what your bay needs. For best results, consult with a professional forester or natural resource manager who can help design a management plan suitable for your bay.

Photo: Antioch Bay, NC, Jeff Marcus

Controlled Burning

Many Carolina Bays are naturally adapted to regular fire. Bays managed for a meadow or forested savannah community need fire to knock back woody vegetation, allowing a rich array of grasses and wildflowers to thrive when the bay dries down.

If the bay has not seen fire in many years, preparation for controlled burning will involve construction of fire lines (ideally in the uplands, not the bay itself). In some cases, mechanically removing some of the woody vegetation from the bay before burning may help burn conditions.  Controlled burns in bays should be conducted by experienced burn bosses under very specific weather and site conditions. 

Check this map to see if there is a Prescribed Burn Association in your area that can help provide the training, support, and equipment needed to get fire on your land.

Photo: Prescribed Burn in Antioch Bay, NC, Alan Weakley