Coles Creek Land and Timber Company is located approximately 10 miles north of Natchez, Mississippi. This 1,355-acre tract is in a strategic area of the Mississippi Flyway.
About 500 acres were reforested to bottomland hardwoods in 2001. Coles Creek’s owners strive to provide diverse habitat types to ensure the needs of all animals, not just waterfowl, are met. They have restored habitat for threatened and endangered species like the least tern and Louisiana black bear; migratory bird species such as the prothonotary warbler; and resident wildlife species including turkey, squirrel, and white-tailed deer.
One natural moist-soil impoundment and one deep-water area are maintained on the Coles Creek property. The shallow-water impoundment provides habitat for shorebirds, waterfowl, and aquatic species. The deep-water area offers alligators complete protection from human depredation and disturbance. In 2001, the landowners undertook an extensive nest box program for wood ducks and prothonotary warblers.
The easement prohibits clearcutting trees or draining wetlands on the property; however, oil and gas exploration, drilling, and production are permitted. The members may build hunting blinds and maintain roads to reach them, but other development is restricted.
Coles Creek Land and Timber Company donated the easement to benefit their property’s bottomlands for wildlife and future members. Jeff Clark, a club member, says, “We gave the easement because we love Coles Creek. We know that areas of this type tend to disappear if they are not protected. This is one of the few bottomland hardwood areas of its size and quality in Southwest Mississippi.”
Success Stories
Read through the stories of 12 landowners and the success that the conservation easements had.
Nash Buckingham’s Beaver Dam was a duck club organized in 1882. It was the property of the Owen family. Nash Buckingham, a renowned and well-loved outdoor writer, frequented Beaver Dam. The conservation easement is approximately 159 acres in the historic Mississippi River Alluvial Floodplain in Tunica County. Tunica County is mostly agricultural, producing cotton, corn,
The Caulk Island property is in the southeast portion of Desha County, Arkansas, on the east side (Mississippi Side) of the Mississippi River and the unprotected (batture) side of the Mississippi River mainline levee system. Lake Whittington forms part of the boundary of the island. This lake, formerly Bolivar Bend, was cut off from the
Coles Creek Land and Timber Company is located approximately 10 miles north of Natchez, Mississippi. This 1,355-acre tract is in a strategic area of the Mississippi Flyway. About 500 acres were reforested to bottomland hardwoods in 2001. Coles Creek’s owners strive to provide diverse habitat types to ensure the needs of all animals, not just
The Dead Tiger Mitigation Bank was organized to compensate for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permits for unavoidable negative impacts to wetlands and streams. The bank is located within the buffer zone of the Stennis Space Center. The buffer zone restricts residential and commercial development, which will aid the bank’s long-term success. This mitigation bank
The late Grey Ferris of Vicksburg donated a 2,114-acre conservation easement with bottomland hardwoods and a small portion of pasture. The Mississippi Land Trust and Ferris negotiated the conservation easement terms together. This binding agreement prohibits any development not compatible with a relatively natural preserve. The property’s roads, walking paths, and a small shed can