New app eases access to Hilton Head's wildlife trails

With less need for costly pamphlets and signs to guide bird and wildlife watchers along Hilton Head Island’s various nature trails, a local club has decided there’s an app for that.

The Hilton Head Island Audubon Society has released a new birding trail website and app for smartphones and tablets, which show the various spots to view local birdlife.

“People don’t want to go to local shops and buy pamphlets anymore,” former club president Rick Riebesell said. “They want something that is quick and at their fingertips.”

The Hilton Head Island Birding Trail website and app include a map with directions to the locations, a list of other facilities in the area, the types of birds that can be spotted and the trails’ history.

The Audubon Society provided all of the content for the website and app with the goal of helping to preserve wildlife habitat by creating a communitywide appreciation for natural areas, Riebesell said.

The club also was concerned that South Carolina doesn’t have a statewide wildlife trail website, such as many other states including Texas and Florida.

“As a society, we believed that providing our tourists with a website would also make Hilton Head more competitive with other resort communities,” Riebesell said. “This would benefit our entire community, not just those interested in preserving wildlife.”

The Audubon Society received a grant of $45,000 from the Town of Hilton Head Island to establish the website and app in September 2014.

Along with Hilton Head trails, the website and app include trails in the Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge and on Daufuskie Island.

The website and app also provide information about the local businesses who sponsor the birding trail. If interested in sponsoring the app, contact Riebesell at rick@riebesell.com.

This story was originally published May 31, 2015 at 4:56 PM.