This area, which derives its name from the Ashepoo, Combahee and Edisto rivers, teems with wildlife and harbors a variety of habitat types, including upland pine forest, bottomland hardwoods, freshwater wetlands and tidal salt marshes. O f crucial importance to wintering waterfowl, the area has been designated as high priority habitat under the North American Waterfowl Management Plan. The ACE Basin contains 17,000 acres of saline, brackish and freshwater marshes. B ut wildlife are not the only ones who enjoy the ACE Basin. The rivers provide varied recreational opportunities for humans, as well.
People fish for bass, trout, flounder and shad.
Others dive for shark's teeth and fossils. Listed as a scenic Canoe trail, the Edisto River is the longest blackwater river in North America. The water's black color is caused by tanic acids from the surrounding hardwood trees. T he ACE Basin is a valuable region economically as well as ecologically. Timber production is an important industry within the ACE Basin, and much of the uplands are planted in pine stands.