Highlands of Roan Focus Area
Wiles Creek
Diverse habitat
SAHC purchased 166 acres in Mitchell County, within Audubon’s Roan Mountain Important Bird Area. The Wiles Creek Preserve will be owned by SAHC in the long term as a nature preserve and will be managed for priority bird habitats, water quality, and other natural features.
The Wiles Creek property contains pristine headwater streams.
Imagine a verdant forest with lush ferns growing underneath full, mature canopies. The slushing rush of stream waters echoes all around, lulling you into a state of calm relaxation. Nearby, wildflowers in meadow openings flush with sunlight set the stage for busy activity from pollinators (and their predators), hinting at the array of wildlife which call these places home. Damp earth and plentiful rocks harbor a healthy population of salamanders. Fortunately this
stunning oasis in the Highlands of Roan – SAHC’s new Wiles Creek Preserve – is now permanently protected. We are grateful to the committed conservation-minded folks – including SAHC members, a former landowner, Brad and Shelli Stanback, and the Carolina Bird Club – who made protection of this beautiful sanctuary possible. SAHC recently purchased 166 acres in Mitchell County, NC adjoining Pisgah National Forest, within the
New Conservation Property
Wiles Creek
Other SAHC Preserves / Easements Appalachian Trail U.S. Forest Service Land 4 | View from the Highlands Fall 2020
| Land Protection Updates
Audubon Society’s Roan Mountain Important Bird Area. The undeveloped tract is highly visible from the public overlook at Roan High Knob. Part of a landscape of protected lands with other SAHCconserved properties, the Wiles Creek Preserve will be owned by SAHC in the long term as a nature preserve and will be managed for priority bird habitats, water quality, and other natural features. The property will be used as part of SAHC’s “Connecting People with Land” program, and we are excited about the potential for birding field trips and other excursions to the property in the future. “There is much to discover about the history of this property,” says Land Protection Director Michelle Pugliese. “From the apple orchard to the old homes that remain, one can imagine a scene of Appalachian mountain living on this beautiful tract of land.” Elevations on the property reach 4,700 ft., and it contains northern hardwood forest habitat and two
