Mobile Bay is home to 49 species of mammals, 126 species of reptiles and amphibians, 337 species of fresh and saltwater fish, and 355 species of birds. Endemic species within the basin include 40 fishes, 33 mussels and 110 aquatic snails, as well as a number of turtles, aquatic insects and crustaceans.
What kind of wildlife is in Mobile Alabama?
Critters at the top of the food chain are black bears, and coyotes. Foxes and bobcats come in second for the carnivores. Red wolves once roamed the forested regions through most of the state, but the species was declared extinct in the region back in the 1920’s. There are two species of skunks Alabama.
How deep is the Mobile Bay?
Mobile Bay is 413 square miles (1,070 km2) in area. It is 31 miles (50 km) long by a maximum width of 24 miles (39 km). The deepest areas of the bay are located within the shipping channel, sometimes in excess of 75 feet (23 m) deep, but the average depth of the bay is 10 feet (3 m).
Is Mobile Bay an ocean?
Mobile Bay is Alabama’s central estuary, serving as a transitional zone where the rivers’ fresh water can mingle with tidally-influenced marine waters. An estuary is a partially enclosed body of water formed where freshwater from rivers and streams flows into the ocean, mixing with the salty water.
What wildlife is in Gulf Shores Alabama?
Take a nature walk on the elevated boardwalk where more than 450 alligators (from hatchlings to mature adults) can be seen in their natural habitat. Visitors will also enjoy seeing other natural species such as turtles, ospreys, owls and bull frogs.
Are there mountain lions in Alabama?
Cougars probably were extirpated from Alabama in the mid-1800s. Occasional sightings suggest free-ranging pumas, of unknown origin, occasionally may be present in Alabama, but there is no self-sustaining population currently known.
Do we have wolves in Alabama?
The red wolf was extirpated from Alabama in the early 1920s. HABITAT: Prefers bottomland river forest and swamps with various stages of succession but will utilized agricultural land and coastal prairie marshes. In general, they can thrive in most areas that have adequate prey populations and little human persecution.
Are there sharks in Mobile Bay?
Bull sharks are extremely common in Mobile Bay, one of the Gulf’s most important shark nursery areas. Biologists with the Dauphin Island Sea Lab collected 57 baby bull sharks from the beach on Saturday.
Are there alligators in Mobile Bay?
Alligators have been reported in parking lots on the causeway that crosses Mobile Bay and along heavily traveled U.S. 98 in Daphne, CBS affiliate WKRG-TV reported, so the city posted notes on social media asking residents to be careful, particularly with pets.
Can you swim in Mobile Bay?
We recommend that individuals always take appropriate precautions when swimming. Those precautions include not exposing open wounds to the water and washing thoroughly after leaving the water. Bacteriological testing requires a 24-hour incubation period.
Why is the water brown in Mobile Bay?
The culprit: a marine “diatom” called Cylindrotheca. It’s nontoxic (for once!), but scientists at Florida Gulf Coast University say the diatom can contribute to an imbalance in the water’s oxygen levels, which can lead to fish kills if the oxygen levels fall far enough.
Is Mobile Bay fresh or saltwater?
Mobile Bay’s salinity is driven predominantly by freshwater inflow from the large Mobile Bay watershed. A combination of winds and tidal regimes delivers salty Gulf waters into the Bay from the south. As a result, salinity in Mobile Bay is highly dynamic.
Does salt water enter Mobile Bay?
Yes. Mobile Bay is an estuary. Mobile Bay is a semi-enclosed body of water that has salt water entering it from the Gulf of Mexico and fresh water entering from rivers.
Are there bears in Gulf Shores Alabama?
It turns out that Gulf State Park just doesn’t have enough area for a bear. An adult Alabama black bear needs at least 15,000 acres to forage and to seek a mate while the stay at home female still requires between 2500-3000 acres to live on.
Are there sharks in Gulf Shores Alabama?
Atlantic sharpnose sharks are very common in the coastal waters of Alabama and across the Gulf of Mexico.
Does Gulf Shores Alabama have alligators?
GULF SHORES, Ala. (WPMI) — Gulf Shores residents are on high alert as a nearly 10-foot-long alligator has moved into their neighborhood pond, just feet from homes.
Do black panthers exist in Alabama?
There are no black panthers, not in Alabama or anywhere else in North America. Frank Allen, area biologist for Martin-Skyline WMA in northeast Alabama says the only black big cats are melanistic leopards in Africa and Asia, and rarely a Central American jaguar.
Are there black panthers in Alabama?
There are also no laws governing the hunting of blank panthers because there is no such animal believed to be in Alabama. Officials with the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources insist there is no evidence of black panthers existing in the state for at least 50 years.
What big cats live in Alabama?
Alabama has two native cats. The first and largest is the mountain lion, also called a cougar, catamount, painter, puma or panther. Cougars are tawny brown to grayish in color, weighing from 75 to 120 pounds, and can reach a length of about 6½ feet, nose to tail.
Do moose live in Alabama?
However, currently, the main moose populations are only in 19 of the 50 U.S. states. 31 states that do not have Moose populations: Alabama – There are no moose in the state of Alabama.
What predatory animals live in Alabama?
Alabama’s predators include the bobcat, coyote, red fox, and gray fox. Its coastal waters are home to sharks, strange fish like the Clymene dolphin (Stenella clymene) and common marine mammals like the killer whale and California sea lion.