EMERGENCY UPDATE!!

Hello Everyone,

I am so sorry that I have not posted in a long time, but I promise I will do better. My excuse is the uncertainty of the future of our beautiful Cypress Gardens. Have you seen the news? Well if you haven't been reading the paper or seen the small blurb on the news, County Council is about to lay off half of our staff and get rid of the majority of the animals. All of the 13 species of crocodilians will be gone! Anything that is not native may be GONE! PEDRO in not native and therefore GONE! The amazing parrots are not native, the ginormous anacondas, the beautiful fly-river turtle, the long slender-snouted Tomistoma all GONE! The Berkeley County Council believes that Berkeley County no longer wants to pay $5.00 per tax payer to keep the only amazing thing Berkeley County owns. They think that you no longer want bragging rights to the most extraordinary place in all the world. I will look for the Post and Courier article and post it for you. They say they will be trading Crocodile Isle for something more lucrative, like another rental facility building. I am not saying anything out of line here, it was posted in the paper. http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/mar/11/cypress_gardens_crocs_could_feel_budget_33465/
The project of covering over crocodile isle and making it a formal gardens and gutting a rat infested reptile building will cost ( I can't even guess) a lot of money. What if they send all the animals away and realize that they don't have the money for the new proposed "renovations" Will the park cease to exist, will they end up getting rid of all the fish and native reptiles because people will quit going.

Please write County Council, get the news out, get to the facts before you let this happen. This will all be decided soon and it seems that Berkeley County is even burying the hearings about it on there website making it almost impossible to find... HMMMM!

I quote a recent visitor to Cypress Gardens, " My wife and I would probably still come see the gardens and take a boat ride, although you can do that anywhere in Charleston, but we would never get our teenage kids to hang out with us without the animal exhibits - and to me that is priceless!"

Life's a Swamp

Come See What You're Missing

Cypress Gardens is an 170 + acre swamp garden and wildlife education park. We are celebrating our 75th anniversary this year. Take the time to come and see us soon!!

We have heard so many people in the past few years that say they have lived in the Charleston Area all their lives and have never been out to Cypress Gardens. I think to myself, what a shame, but I know we are all guilty of not taking the opportunities that our towns afford us. We chose instead to travel to another city and see what is there, thinking that we will eventually get around to seeing those places which are much closer to home. Let me tell you a little bit about what you are missing by passing up Cypress Gardens for one more weekend. First, the magnificent peace and quiet you find here. We are at most 45 minutes from most Charlestonians even though for some the mere mention of a Moncks Corner address keeps them away. We are between Goose Creek and Moncks Corner, but feel like a world away from all the hustle and bustle of your daily lives. With all of the growth in the area, the wildlife is getting pushed farther and farther out and we provide a sanctuary for more kinds of birds, butterflies, dragonflies and mammals than you can find anywhere else in the area. We plant for these animals to insure that they stay healthy and happy and enjoy being at home here. Butterfly gardens are everywhere with host and nectar plants that have the butterflies and bees all atwitter. If you don’t see enough of them outside, head into the Butterfly House and get help identifying what you’ve seen. There are 4 ½ miles of walking trails, some quite remote for the adventure seekers. Please be aware that we call them nature trails and if you don’t want to see nature (spiders, snakes, an occasional biting insect – although surprisingly very few) stay off of them. There is also the opportunity to paddle through the 80 acre Cypress and Tupelo swamp that is home to more than 50 species of fish and countless other natural wonders. There are days where the dark tannin-stained water is so still that it reflects the trees and sky with such perfect mirrored beauty that many folks can’t tell which way is right side up when they get their pictures developed. As your curiosity peaks as to what might dwell in the dark water an alligator pops his nose up, giving you a small glimpse of his shy nature and a hint that there is way more here than meets the eye. A short stroll to the aquarium, which is home to almost every species of fish, reptile and amphibian in our swamp allows you a full view of the hidden wonders that make their home here. One of the animals not on display that you just can’t miss if you try is the Carolina Anole. They are the small green and brown lizards you see on the benches, trees and fences in the park. (They are not chameleons, but that is another blog all together.) People are surprised to see the numerous non-native parrots, snakes and crocodiles that we have on display. We were surprised too as we started receiving calls from all over the tri-county area (and beyond) from people whose exotic pets needed a good home. It started with a few parrots and a rather large python and grew to enormous dinner plate sized Pacu, and a 16 ft anaconda. And before you ask, yes they were all once pets. We even received a call from a small zoo owner pleading with us to rescue the 10 or so crocodiles he had on display. The funding was getting tight and he didn’t know what to do with them, so we quickly built Crocodile Isle in order to save them from euthanasia. I have watched Cypress Gardens blossom over the last 8 years and marvel at the beauty every morning. It is a phenomenal place to work and study nature. It is full of staff who love what they do and treat each other like any other American dysfunction family. Anywhere else we would seem like misfits and our animals would be odd and out of place, but here it truly and magically works. Every one of us loves to share our knowledge, so just grab anyone who works here with your questions about your day. If they don’t know they can find a Biologist or Horticulturist who does. Plan to pack a lunch and a few drinks and come spend the day with us. Many visitors come in the afternoon and soon realize they should have given themselves more time. A whole day of family friendly entertainment that is great for granddads and grandbabies alike.

Admission prices and other info can be found on the Cypressgardens.info website as well as directions to the park from just about anywhere.

Until then,
Life's a Swamp!