Bird Island, North Carolina

Bird Island is approximately 1300 acres adjacent to the coastal resort town of Sunset Beach, North Carolina. Sunset Beach is on a barrier island and is the southernmost town in North Carolina. Bird Island can be reached by walking along the seashore toward the South Carolina border. Due to the contour of the Atlantic Coast at this point, the direction of travel to Bird Island is approximately West-Southwest. Previously, Bird Island was separated from Sunset Beach by a tidal creek (Mad Inlet) that could be easily crossed only at low tide. Accretion of ocean sand (due to hurricane hctivity in the 1990s as well as environmental activity to fill in dune grass) has gradually filled in the tidal creek so that two separate islands became one.

Preservation

Bird Island was privately owned prior to 2002. The shoreline, dunes, and marshland of Bird Island provide important habitat and nesting for species that are endangered, threatened, or of special concern, including the Kemp's Ridley and Loggerhead sea turtles. Although there was no vehicular access to this land, there was the threat that the land might someday be developed. The state of North Carolina used $4.2 million of public and private funding to purchase the land and create a coastal reserve, administered by the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management.

"Kindred Spirit" mailbox

Slightly hidden among the dunes on Bird Island is a plain rural mailbox, containing an assortment of notebooks, pens, and pencils. The outside of the mailbox is marked "Kindred Spirit". Visitors use the notebooks to record inconsequential statements, special thoughts, and sometimes private prayers. Visitors have the opportunity to make public statements in complete anonymity.

Public nudity

On the seashore at the Sunset Beach town limit there is a large sign stating that nudity might be encountered. The seclusion of the area, the fact that no municipality has jurisdiction, and the warm Atlantic Ocean breezes seem to make Bird Island popular at times with naturists. Sunset Beach police, who have some authority, but don't enforce laws outside of the town's limits, periodically patrol the beach beyond the town limits using off-road vehicles. Town leaders have discussed the possibility of annexing Bird Island in an effort to restrict nudity. However, the fact that the extreme southwestern tip of Bird Island extends into South Carolina at the Little River Inlet (with no visible ) adds to any jurisdictional confusion.

External links

* [http://dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/news/birdisland.htm NC Department of Coastal Management News Release]
* http://www.wilmingtontoday.com/Nature/Preserves/BirdIsland.html