The Cahaba River gurgles through the foothills
of the Appalachian Mountains as it winds its way
along on its 190
mile journey from its headwaters in St. Clair County
to its confluence with the Alabama River in Dallas County. On its southwesterly
journey, the river passes through parts of St. Clair, Jefferson, Shelby, Bibb,
Tuscaloosa, Chilton, Perry, and Dallas counties. The Cahaba is one of the
state's last free-flowing rivers (others have been dammed for
hydro-electric power), and it drains an area of approximately 1,825 square
miles.
The Cahaba is one of the most biologically rich rivers in the nation.
Beneath its waters, the
Cahaba is home to 131 different species of fish -- more species per mile than
any river of its size in the country. It also provides habitat for
fresh-water mussels and aquatic insects found nowhere else in the world.
The watershed also harbors a high diversity of
plant life. In the mid 1990’s botanist Jim Allison happened upon a “botanical
lost world” on the banks of the river in Bibb County. More than 61 rare plants
were discovered at the Bibb County Glades. Eight of the species
are new to science.
Perhaps the most well known plant, found wedged in the
crevices of limestone rock in the middle of the river, is the celebrated Cahaba
Lily (photo at left courtesy of
Beth Maynor
Young). In May, the river puts on a private show when the rare, endangered Cahaba
Lily blooms among the rocks and wild water.
The Cahaba River basin hosts more
than 100 rare and imperiled species including many snails, mussels and fish.
Mussels include the
Alabama orb and Alabama rainbow and critically imperiled
snails found nowhere else in the world include painted rocksnail, and Cahaba
pebblesnail.
