Rudy Mancke shows a bird grasshopper on Bulls. Patricia Lynch, SeeWee Visitor Center, 10/16/05

Rudy Mancke shows a starfish to Marshall Sasser - 10/16/05

The morning of October 16, 2005 started out with clear skies and brisk morning air. Coastal Expeditions ferry, “Island Cat,” escorted by a few bottlenose dolphins, carried visitors to Cape Romain’s Bulls Island. In celebration of National Wildlife Refuge Week, naturalist Rudy Mancke, former host of ETV’s, Naturescene lead the day’s tours. Mancke began the first tour with a cicada skin on the tip of his nose and a Viceroy butterfly perched on his hand. The group ventured into Alligator Alley and encountered multiple alligators partially hidden beneath the duckweed. Mancke lead visitors through the island’s maritime forest to Boneyard Beach where, in the company of whelks and sand dollars, he discussed barrier island geology. The Bulls Island tours with Mancke were the 10th annual fund raiser. (By Julie Binz, SEWEE Association Educator.)

Contributed by: Patricia Lynch, Park Ranger, Sewee Visitor Center, Cape Romain NWR, Awendaw, SC