a B. Postell for $6,000. Bordering the predominantly white town of Thunderbolt and Southeast coastal salt marsh, the land was, at one time, part of the Placentia Plantation, later known as Warren Place and contained two large homes which became Parson's Hall, located at the site of the current swimming pool, and Boggs Hall, located in front of Camilla-Hubert Hall (Hall 1991).
Construction of buildings on the campus began near these structures on the sandy bluff overlooking the salt marsh in the area now known as Felix J. Alexis Circle. This high ground represents barrier island beach dunes that were formed during the Pleistocene epoch 35,000 to 40,000 years ago. At that time the coastline was adjacent to the current campus because the sea level was higher as the result of globally warmer temperatures and more water in the oceans from melted polar ice. Small changes in sea level coupled to tidal and wave scouring can result in significant landscape rearrangement along broad, gently-sloping, sandy, barrier island coastlines. Even without sea level changes, the action of wind, wave, and tides, especially during storms, annually re-configure barrier island coastlines. Certain places on Wassaw Island, a favorite field trip spot for SSC Marine Biology classes, have undergone changes from dune, to beach, to tide pool, to salt marsh, back to dune over a period as short as 14 years.
The campus is located in the low country, an area bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, sand hills to the west, and extending from Georgetown, South Carolina, to St. Marys, Georgia. The diverse ecological communities of the low country and campus result from the considerable influence of fresh water, salty ocean water, and the tidal mixing of them resulting in the biologically productive shallow aquatic habitats called estuaries. The low country represents one of the most extensive salt marsh estuary systems in the United States. The magnitude of the system results from the broad gently sloping sandy coast and continental shelf of the Southeast U.S. coupled with one of the highest tide ranges along the east coast of North America. Each day, two high and two low tides averaging 6 to 8 feet in range inundate a vast area of the coastal zone, maintaining a system of creeks, channels, and rivers. Since tides are principally the result of the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun on the earth, the timing and range of the tides depend upon their relative positions. Tidal range is greater than average when the sun and moon are aligned with the earth during new and full moons and are called spring tides. Tidal range is smaller than average when they are not aligned during the other moon phases and are called neap tides.
Besides an average annual rainfall of over 50 inches per year, an enormous volume of freshwater enters the coastal zone from rivers. The fresh water that drains into the tidal zone is mixed with sea water and creating brackish conditions and one of the earth's most productive ecosystem. Energy captured by plants from sunlight flows from prey to predator throughout a complex estuarine food web in which nutrients are absorbed, redistributed, and recycled. Due to the abundance of early life stages of both coastal marine and oceanic species in the system, estuaries are called the "nurseries of the sea." The eggs and larvae of both estuarine and marine species are carried into a system where they find both resources and refuge. Estuarine habitats are subdivided into salt marsh shrub zone, salt marsh flats, needle rush marsh, smooth cord grass marsh, marsh edge zone, intertidal creek banks, bars and flats, and tidal pools, creeks, and rivers.
The saline influence of the ocean in coastal environments is significant. Sea water is salty because it contains 7 major ions (elements forming salts when not separated by water in a solution), 5 minor elements, and 11 trace elements. The salinity or saltiness of oceanic sea water is about 36 parts per thousand (3.6%) dissolved inorganic ions and elements. The salinity of the brackish water in the tid