-Funding for "Coastal Kingdom" is provided by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina, which proudly supports this program.

Through the generosity of our members and donors, the ETV Endowment has funded educational and entertaining programming like "Coastal Kingdom" for more than 40 years.

♪♪ -You know, I just love to get out in the field and look for animals.

In fact, I think maybe I was destined to become a naturalist.

When I was really, really young, I just had this incredible interest in living things.

You know, my parents were really, really supportive, so a lot of my young years were spent exploring vacant lots looking for things, skin-diving and snorkeling in the ocean, and just plain looking around for animals.

But it wasn't until many, many years later when I met a couple of key people who helped me to realize I could actually make a living doing this.

I could make a career out of it.

So today we're gonna meet a professional, a student, and a volunteer, and we're gonna talk to them about what was the spark that got 'em excited about this field.

♪♪ So look at that little guy!

Okay.

We got something big on.

Here we go.

We've got the bird.

And there's already a chick in there.

♪♪ ♪♪ So, I met our first guest when I was just 10 years old, and he's been critically important to my career.

Dr. Whitfield Gibbons is a renowned herpetologist, author, and educator, and he's agreed to go out in the field with us today and talk to us a little bit about how he got his start.

Whit, thanks for doing this today.

-Oh, I'm glad you're here.

I always am.

-So what was the spark that got you excited about herpetology as a young kid in Tuscaloosa?

-Well, I started like you did when I was just a kid.

And fortunately,I had people around me who encouraged me.

And I think that's important, to have people that think it's okay to do this.

It's okay to love nature.

-So I think what you did for me, Whit, is -- I mean, I was already super interested in reptiles and amphibians, but I think you showed me that I could actually do this for a living and make a career out of it.

-Yeah, and you've done a good job of it.

But, uh -- But that's what I did.

I just wanted to keep doing this the rest of my life.

-So, obviously, I've been here several times, but tell us about this place where we are.

-Well, this is a place -- We call it Salleyland.

Um, it's about 100 acres of worthless swamp land in some people's mind but obviously has a nice stream that flows through it.

A third of it is oak-hickory forest.

And the far side is a sandhill with longleaf pine.

-And your plan is kind of to catalog everything, every living thing you find here, basically.

-I think people love to make lists... -Yeah.

-...and keeping a list.

I do keep a list of everything we find, what other people find.

Throughout the Southeast, private land is where a lot of -- most of the animals are.

And plants.

-Yep.

-Wow.

Wow.

-So a little bit different out west, isn't it?

-Yes, it is.

-Where there's huge, huge tracts of land owned by the government.

-That's right, but in South Carolina, for instance, over 90% of the land is private land, so that's where over 90% of the biodiversity is going to be.

-It's been a real inspiration for your writing... -Absolutely.

...to sit out here.

And is that one of the reasons you -- you acquired this property, is to have a place to write?

-Well, the actual first reason I did is I had grandchildren that were coming along and I wanted them to learn to enjoy the outdoors.

-Actually, you wanted to use them as technicians, right?

-Oh.

And a little of that.

Yeah.

-So instead of hiring graduate students or technicians, you had your grandkids, and they did the field work.

-That's right.

They did a lot.

They love getting in the water.

They all love getting wet, apparently.

-They all love catching animals.

-And they love catching animals, and they know which ones to catch and which ones not to catch, which is important.

But I think all of them have a total appreciation of nature.

Like, it would be nice if we could teach everyone to feel that way.

-Yeah.

So you actually -- You wrote -- I read it -- a great book about this place.

-Yeah, it's called "Salleyland."

And it's about why I got the property, which is partly because, during retirement, what am I gonna do to retire?

Well, I'm gonna do the same thing I started as a kid and did through my career, and I'm still doing the same thing -- getting out in nature, looking at reptiles and amphibians and everything else.

-Actually, it's even better than that because you're contributing.

You're still writing public articles.

It's keeping you busy, but you also continue to contribute, too -- research and also education.

-Right.

Yeah.

And I also invite other researchers who want to do it, and we have some from other -- -You said you have a herpetology class coming later this week, right?

-Right.

Yeah.

One this week and one next week.

Yeah.

-So we've had a chance to talk a little bit, but you got time to kind of show us around and take us out in the field?

-Oh, yeah.

Let's do that.

Sure.

Let's do it.

-Tell me about this plant.

-It's called a Carolina Pink.

It's obviously -- -It's almost white, isn't it?

It's got a little bit of a hint.

-It turns white after it blooms.

Yeah.

-Cool.

-We'll see some more along the way.

-So, one of the wild azaleas, huh?

-Yeah.

Yeah.

This -- Early -- Some of the early blooming plants are the -- the wild azaleas that come in.

And you see the leaves are just coming in because they're deciduous.

They don't -- They lose their leaves in the wintertime.

-Unlike our horticultural varieties.

-Right.

-This is beautiful, man.

There's a whole grove of them here.

-Yeah.

♪♪ -Nothing under this one.

Some good holes, though.

-Yeah.

It's well-seasoned, isn't it?

-Yeah.

It is.

-Are you checking the trees?

-Yeah.

I'm looking.

I'm... -That's the kind of tree, don't you think?

♪♪ So this is one of the different kind of habitats.

This is a pine stand, loblolly stand.

See the pine straw on the floor?

Of course, different array of animals up here.

You get Southeastern five-lined skinks, for instance.

-There's a little -- -Oh, did you get it?

-So here's a little -- little ground skink.

-Yeah.

-So this -- this is an adult.

-And it's a female.

No.

Wait.

Let's see.

Its belly is turning yellow.

That means it's a male.

Nice little animal.

♪♪ -And if this is a -- This is a neat one.

-Don't break his tail.

Nice!

-So, here -- Oh, God.

You see, this is something we don't have right in the low country there.

A fence lizard.

And, man, look at - Look at the camouflage here.

They're so cryptic.

-Yeah.

Perfect.

-This is an animal that blends in beautifully.

But off it goes.

-Oh, look at that!

Perfect.

♪♪ -See what it's like.

Oh, look at that!

-There we go!

Get a good picture of that one.

-I just have to -- Snakes have always been my favorite.

And black racers are one of those really, really good ones.

-Very gently.

He won't even bite you.

-And this one is -- Boy, it's really cool.

-Is it really?

-Yep.

-Nice!

-[Laughing] With black racers, I mean, you rarely can catch one without getting bit, but...

But it is true.

-Look at him trying to bite you.

-Yeah.

In slow motion.

So that's -- that's cool.

I didn't even really get musked.

♪♪ Perfect.

♪♪ -Okay.

Let's -- Why don't we check the traps?

-Boy, this is a beautiful wetland down here.

-Yeah, this is Goodland Creek.

Flows into the South Edisto River.

-Trash-can traps!

-Yeah.

-Yeah, so, I actually worked with Whit for 21 years at the Savannah River Ecology Lab, and we used a lot of traps like this trash-can trap.

I see some fish species in there.

-Here's a turtle.

-Oh, my gosh!

Look at that!

What -- Tell 'em about that one.

Oh, my gosh!

What a cool turtle!

-A baby musk turtle.

This one -- Oh, look at him.

He's sticking his head out.

They will bite.

-[ Chuckles ] -This is a little bitty baby.

You can see it's no bigger than a thumbnail.

-Ohh.

It's hard to imagine that a turtle this small can survive, right?

There are so many predators that would eat this.

-I know.

Look at it.

See the two little yellow lines on its head?

-Let's see -- What else you see in there, Whit?

-Uh... -Looks like there's a couple of fish.

-Spotted sunfish, I think.

-Wow!

They are gorgeous fish!

I mean, that's prettier than most tropical fish.

-Oh, it is a beautiful little fish.

-I guess we need to put these back in.

-Yeah, put them back in the -- in the creek.

In they go.

Yep.

There they go.

Swimming away.

-Whit, this has been absolutely amazing.

It's like old times, isn't it?

-It is.

It sure is.

-But I'll tell you what.

After doing this today, I -- You know, your retirement plan, having a piece of land like this and surveying what's here, that might work for me, too.

-I think it will.

-Anyway, thanks again for having us.

This was fun.

-My pleasure.

-Today we get to get out in the field with Miriam Boucher, and she's a graduate student at Clemson University, and she's agreed to get out and catch some alligators with us.

Miriam, thanks for joining us.

-Thanks for having me, Tony.

I'm really excited to be here.

-So we're gonna talk lots about alligators, but before we do that, I was hoping we could talk a little bit about kind of how you got your start.

-Definitely.

I'm, uh -- I'm one of those kids who I'm actually from Calgary, Alberta, in Canada, so I wouldn't say I'm a transplant, but I found myself in the U.S. a lot.

And kind of where I got my start is I'm part of that generation of kids that grew up in a city that were inspired by what we saw on TV.

So, for me, I'm part of that Steve Irwin generation.

-"Crocodile Hunter."

-That's right.

As soon as I could work a remote, the Outdoor Network was kind of my bread and butter.

And so I grew up seeing wildlife on my TV screen that wasn't even remotely close to what was in my backyard.

So for me, the first time that I saw crocodiles and snakes, that was it for me.

I was in love.

-So, what -- what did you think you would be doing as a career?

-So, this is it.

Essentially, in my first-grade assignment, when it asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, what I wrote down and what I drew is that, for me, crocodilian biologist was synonymous with Crocodile Hunter.

So it was "Crocodile Hunter" and "hognose snake biologist."

-I love that.

Hognose snake biologist.

Talk about a niche market.

-Right?

Yep.

I thought they were a lot more common than they are, especially in, like, Western Canada, but, yeah, that was where I kind of saw myself.

-Did you have any particular mentors, I mean, when you were young or when you got older, that really made you realize you could do this?

-When I finished my undergrad, I got linked up with a woman who was doing work in Belize.

Her name is Dr. Marisa Tellez.

She started the Crocodile Research Coalition in Belize.

-Boy, that's perfect.

-Yeah.

She gave me, like, the foothold that I needed to get into this.

So the very first time I worked with crocs, part of my time was working with her while she was doing her PhD project.

And then through that, I've met lots of people who have had an influence on my career.

And Thomas Rainwater is another one for this PhD project... -And we have all worked together -- me, you, and Thomas.

-Right?

So he, too, has been somebody who's really helped me with this project and helped further kind of my career as a crocodilian biologist, for sure.

-Miriam, tell us a little bit about the research you're conducting now.

-Right.

So, my research now is looking at alligator diet and contaminants of emerging concern, not just in South Carolina, but across the region.

And so what we know about alligators is that they're very resilient to contamination, to pollution in our environment, meaning that they can accumulate it, but we don't necessarily see bad effects of it on them.

But what that gives us is an opportunity to use alligators and their resilience to these contaminants as kind of a litmus test for what is out there.

And their main exposure to these contaminants is through diet.

And so by collecting stomach contents through stomach-flushing live alligators and collecting whole stomachs from legally harvested alligators, I can look at diet but also explore ingested microplastics that they might be picking up from their food in the environment, as well as taking little muscle samples and blood samples from alligators so we can look at legacy contaminants like mercury, but also new and emerging contaminants like the forever chemicals that we're hearing a lot about.

-Like PFAS chemicals.

-That's right.

Mm-hmm.

-So, Miriam, we get to get out and catch alligators together today.

So, you've worked with us a bunch in the past, and one of the things I love about you, Miriam, is you're just as excited about this stuff as I am -- I would say more excited about alligators than I am.

-I haven't had as many years to get burnt out on it yet.

-Alright.

So we get to get out today and see what we can catch and conduct some of your research.

-That's right.

Yep.

We're going to be going out.

We're not going to be stomach-flushing this time, but we're going to take some blood samples and some muscle biopsy punches if they're large enough and get all that good morphometric measurement and all the good stuff that tells us a little bit about each individual alligator.

-Okay, well, let's go do it.

-Alright.

♪♪ Got him on?

-Yeah.

-Alright.

I'll bring the noose.

-You got him?

-Yep.

-Excellent!

♪♪ Boy, that is a healthy gator.

-Ready, Tony?

-You see where the hook is?

-I do.

-Okay.

Alright.

You got tape?

-I do.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -One.

Two.

Three.

♪♪ -This is a big one.

-Yeah, it is.

-So we got -- we got a hook stuck in the scutes in the back, and now Miriam is waiting for the head to come up so that she can get a noose around it.

And this hooking technique works really well.

Typically, even if it sticks in the animal, it just pops right out typically.

Seems to be coming in gradually.

-Okay.

-Oh, this is a nice-ize one!

You good?

-Yeah.

It's okay.

-Alright.

-I just want to... Just want him to get... on the rope... -Alright.

Let me know what you want me to do.

Thomas Rainwater is here to help us.

This is a nice big animal.

And it's just really a good idea to have, you know, a couple extra people on it.

-Alright.

Let's see if we can get his head turned.

Okay.

Pull.

One.

Two.

Three.

Up, up, up, up!

Keep going!

-Alright.

There's a towel right there.

That's an impressive animal!

-You got him, Tony?

-I think so.

-Ready, you guys?

-Yep.

♪♪ [ Speaks indistinctly ] ♪♪ -Nice.

♪♪ -So, we just measured this alligator, and it's almost 10 feet long and...

Sorry about that.

My bad.

-Push that head down.

You're alright.

-I'm gonna put some weight on it and quit talking to the camera.

-[ Laughs ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Okay, Miriam, you ready?

-I'm ready.

-Okay, so I'm just gonna get the heck out of the way, right?

Is that my job?

-Yep.

-Okay.

-Okay.

One.

Two.

Three.

♪♪ -Tape's off.

♪♪ -Doesn't get any better than that.

-Miriam, that was awesome.

-Yeah, it really was.

-That was really, really good.

I appreciate you coming and spending time with us and doing this with us.

-I'm just happy to be here, and I really appreciate the invitation.

You know I always love coming working down here, so... -Well, I'll tell you what.

We're lucky to have you in this field.

-Thank you.

I'm just happy to be here.

And I love it.

♪♪ -It's a beautiful evening, and I'm here on a barrier island on a beautiful beach at Hunting Island State Park, and we're about to do something really cool.

♪♪ So, we're here at a sea-turtle nest, and we get to help Beth Glass and Buddy Lawrence.

And you guys are with the Friends of Hunting Island.

-Yes.

-And the Sea Turtle Conservation Project, right?

-Right.

-Well, I am so excited about doing this.

So we're going to actually get to dig up -- dig up a sea-turtle nest and do a nest inventory.

Right?

-Yes.

Find out how many babies made it out, how many eggs hatched, how many didn't.

That all goes into seaturtle.org in a database for information.

-Okay, so we're going to remove this thing first and then -- then I get to help, right?

-Of course!

Yeah.

We use these cages to protect against predators, mainly raccoons, on this island.

-And sea-turtle eggs are really nutritious, so a lot of predators are going to want them, for sure.

Okay, and one of the things we're doing is being really careful that we don't, you know -- We're being careful with this vegetation, too, because sea oats and all kinds of plants like this really help to protect the sand and protect the dunes.

So, the root structures keep these dunes intact.

♪♪ Ooh, I think I feel an egg!

-Yeah.

You've got it.

Yeah, once you get an opening and you get the first couple eggs out... -Oh, there's an egg.

So this -- These did not hatch.

-First couple are unhatched.

Yeah.

Um, so if -- You can just kind of feel...

This is a hatched one.

-That has hatched.

Yeah.

Look at that.

-So, the turtle is born with a little tiny -- what is called an egg tooth, and it uses that to break its way out of its egg, then it eventually loses that, but that's how they get out of the egg.

-And we see that in other reptiles, as well.

That's -- Yeah.

So this one's hatched.

A couple of them are not.

So I'm gonna keep going.

-And we did have 138 eggs.

-Oh, wow!

138 in this...?

-Yeah.

They do come back to close to the same area that they were born to lay their eggs.

-Yeah, so, you know, people used to say they always come back to exactly the same beach, right?

-That's not -- -And that's not the case?

-No.

-Um, and the way I understand it, there's, you know -- There's not really reproductive senility in sea turtles, right?

Can't they produce, you know, good young until they're very, very old?

-Yes.

-Which is -- And I've even heard people say that, you know, daughters, mothers, and grandmothers, I guess, all could be on the same beach together nesting.

-Yes.

I'm wanting to say... -Which is remarkable!

-Buddy could tell you for sure, but I wanted to say Cape Romain had a grandmother, mother, and daughter laying on the same beach.

-That's just -- That's amazing.

-Which is -- Genetics is so valuable.

-Sea turtles are a big commitment, aren't they?

-They are.

-And so I'm just curious.

How did you get -- How did you get started in all this?

-Well, I am an Ohio girl who's always wanted to live a place where there was a beach and palm trees.

I love tortoises, which isn't a far stretch from -- I have a cherry-headed red-foot and a red-foot.

And so when we moved here, I immediately started looking for places that take volunteers because not all do.

So, in my search, it brought up Hunting Island, which I'm like -- I didn't know where Hunting Island was at that time.

So, they were having a nest inventory, and I came out, and they had a live hatchling, and I've been hooked from that day.

Never looked back.

-It's like you see one, and that's all it takes.

I always think of these kind of -- They're definitely the stimulus for people to get excited about animals, nature, and, for that matter, this incredible habitat, these barrier islands and the beach.

-Yeah, you could have a worse workplace, that's for sure.

-And you really can't, you know, love just the turtle.

You got to love all of the process and things like that.

-And I do.

I love the every aspect of it.

♪♪ -So no hatchlings in this.

Sometimes you get hatchlings, right?

-Yes.

Um, I would say it's at least a 50% chance.

And we'll go through times where we find a bunch and then we don't find any for a while, but there's usually a good chance.

-Can we come back and check another nest?

-You can.

We will give it another go.

-So we're back at Hunting Island, and it's an entire year later, and we're back to do another nest inventory and see if we can find a hatchling.

-Yes, we're going to inventory this nest right back here.

It is nest number 16.

It was laid on May 21st.

So hopefully we'll find a hatchling in there.

-Alright.

Well, I can't wait to get started.

-Well, let's go.

-Let's do this.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -So I think that's it.

-The last thing we do is just collapse the sides, make sure no hatchling came up at an angle and met harder sand and couldn't make it up.

-Okay.

So nothing here right now.

But let's go check another nest.

-Sounds good.

♪♪ ♪♪ -There we go!

-Ohh!

-Oh, my gosh!

Look at that!

-Whoo!

Yeah, we got a live baby here.

And he's healthy and kicking.

-That one was kind of off to the side a little bit.

♪♪ So, guys, we have a hatchling to release, right?

So we're gonna take it down the beach and let it go?

-Yep.

Let's do it.

-I'm excited about doing that.

♪♪ How are we gonna do this?

What's the plan?

-Well, typically what we do, we set them down.

We give them some area to crawl.

Um, it's just important to get them moving.

-I just can't help but notice how big the head is on that.

I mean, they get -- Even as a little guy, loggerheads have an enormous head, don't they?

-Yes, and that's how they got their name.

And easily crush even up to, like, horseshoe crabs.

-Oh.

When they're adults.

Yeah.

So where is this animal gonna go?

-Okay, so he spends probably, from what I've heard, about 48 hours swimming out to the sargassum seaweed line, where he will hide and eat things smaller than him.

So they swim frantically for what equals about two days, and then they hide.

I think it sits -- It can be up to 70 miles, but I think it sits about 40 miles off our shore.

-That's incredible.

-Yeah.

-So you guys get to do this a lot.

Is it okay if I do the honors and let this one go?

-Of course.

-Okay, little buddy.

Here we go.

-It's like letting your first child go off to college.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Guys, this has been awesome!

This has been really, really neat.

How long have you guys gotten to do this?

-This is my 12th season, and it is Buddy's 24th season.

He has 23 full seasons in.

And the thing that's so cool about that -- it's always struck me since I've been doing it -- is that they take about that same time to reach sexual maturity.

So the very first babies that Buddy worked with are getting ready to come back and lay their own nests.

-Oh, how cool would that be if you find some of the ones that you've released as a hatchling?

Wow.

That's really neat.

-Yeah.

-So, guys, I really appreciate you letting us join you tonight.

This is really, really special.

-It is.

And we appreciate you thinking of us and helping us get our message out.

-And the other thing is what you're doing is really, really important.

I mean, not only for turtles, but for education, for the beach, for the entire marine ecosystem.

♪♪ Today, we're hosting a group of environmental education and biology interns from the region, and we thought it'd be good to get them out in the field and let them share some ideas and adventures.

♪♪ ♪♪ So you think you might want to be a naturalist?

I mean, maybe you want to do it as a hobby or even as a career.

But I'll tell you what.

If you choose to do this, you'll work hard, you'll have a great time, and you might just make some real contributions to science and education.

Thanks for joining us on "Coastal Kingdom."

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -Funding for "Coastal Kingdom" is provided by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina, which proudly supports this program.

Through the generosity of our members and donors, the ETV Endowment has funded educational and entertaining programming like "Coastal Kingdom" for more than 40 years.