North Jefferson Watersheds

Locust Fork Watershed

The Locust Fork is at the upper eastern end of the Warrior Basin. When the Locust Fork meets the Mulberry Fork, the Warrior River is formed. It is one of three major tributaries of the Black Warrior River, stretching across Blount, and some portions of Etowah, Jefferson and Marshall counties

The Flattened Musk Turtle is an endangered species in this watershed.

Gurley Creek Watershed

Gurley creek goes through the Narrows of Gurley Creek Gap north of Birmingham. It flows out of a series of lakes east of state road 75 including Mountain Lake.

Litter, Illegal dumping, and stormwater runoff are threats to this watershed.

Turkey Creek Watershed

Turkey Creek is located in Pinson, about 15 miles north of downtown Birmingham and travels through 466 protected acres called the Turkey Creek Nature Preserve.

Turkey Creek contains some of the most biologically diverse habitats in this region of Alabama. The waters of Turkey Creek are home to three endangered species of fish: the Vermilion Darter (Etheostoma chermocki), the Watercress Darter (Etheostoma nuchale), and the Rush Darter (Etheostoma phytophilum). The Vermilion Darter occurs only in Turkey Creek and nowhere else in the world. Turkey Creek is also home to a threatened bat species (long-eared bat), an endangered bat species (grey bat), an endangered turtle (flattened musk turtle), and an endangered flower (eared cone-flower). This makes a total of 7 protected species that can be found at Turkey Creek

For more information visit, https://turkeycreeknp.com/

Five Mile Creek Watershed

It arises from a spring near Clay Chalkville, joined by several other tributary springs flowing westerly for about 26 miles, emptying into the Locust Fork near the Flat Top Mine. It became highly polluted from the mining industry, but in more recent years it has made a significant recovery.

Dumping of trash, tires and debris are biggest treats to this watershed.

Village Creek Watershed

Village Creek is a body of water that runs 44 miles through the City of Birmingham. It starts at Roebuck and goes through East Lake, North Birmingham, Thomas, Moro Park Ensley, South Pratt to Bayview Lake and into the Warrior River.

Stormwater runoff, soil erosion and littering are big threats to this watershed. The watercress darter is listed as endangered, only found in the Black Warrior Basin.

For more information about Village Creek, visit http://villagecreeksociety.org/index.html