| Fast Facts |
location
from Birmingham southward
ecoregions
Cumberlands and Southern Ridge and Valley, Upper East Gulf Coastal Plain
project size
1,870 square miles
preserves
Barton’s Beach, Kathy Stiles Freeland Bibb County Glades, Pratt’s Ferry
public lands
Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge, Brierfield Ironworks State Park, Oak Mountain State Park, Talladega National Forest
partners
Cahaba River Society, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Black Warrior-Cahaba Land Trust, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, timber companies
conservancy initiatives
Invasive Species, Fire, Freshwater
natural events
Cahaba lilies flower, May–June | |
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| Nearby urban growth is taking a toll on the extraordinary aquatic life of the Cahaba River, which needs clear, free-flowing waters to thrive. |
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Cahaba lilies in bloom.
© Beth Young |
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The lilies rise out of the swift-flowing waters of the Cahaba, clusters of thousands of delicate white flowers spanning the river for miles. They congregate mid-river, wedging their bulbs into crevices in the sandstone rock. These shallows of Alabama’s longest free-flowing river are home to the largest known stands of the Cahaba lily remaining in the world. Two centuries of dam-building on Southeastern rivers have drowned most of their native habitat.
The Cahaba was spared, ironically, more than a century ago by commercial “progress.” In the years following the Civil War, government engineers planned to dam the river, thereby flooding the shoals, to improve steamboat navigation. But the emergence of the railroad as the preferred mode of transportation spelled the end of steamboat commerce, and the dams were deemed unnecessary. |
Canoeing the Cahaba.
© Beth Young |
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In 1992, in a biological discovery whose magnitude has been likened to legendary surveys in the tropics, Georgia botanist Jim Allison discovered eight plant species previously unknown to science in cedar glades along the river. Aquatic diversity is similarly high. Scientists believe the concentration of rare species may be explained by the |
| Ketona dolomite that underlies the glades and other unique geological substrates in the riverbed. | |
Flowing through Birmingham, the state’s largest city, the river is threatened by the effects of development—both direct habitat loss and degradation of water quality caused by runoff and erosion. Key to countering these threats are the protection and management of large forest blocks along the river. The Nature Conservancy has engaged government at all levels to establish, expand and manage a network of public conservation lands within the watershed. Working with key members of Congress, we helped establish the 3,500-acre Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge, a political feat that has been lauded by citizens, corporate leaders, the media and local government.
Learn more about The Nature Conservancy's work in Alabama. |
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| Conservation Profile |
targets
Cahaba lily, Cahaba shiner, alligator, red-cockaded woodpecker, mountain longleaf pine forest, bald cypress swamps, chalk prairies, Bibb County glades, endemic wildflowers
stresses
habitat loss and sedimentation from residential and commercial development, pollution from sewage treatment plants, industry and stormwater runoff, invasive exotic species, excessive water withdrawal
strategies
encourage conservation management of public land, acquire land, secure conservation easements, influence land-use planning, restore ecosystems through fire management, promote compatible development
results
more than 4,000 acres in conservation management | | | | |
