Limestone Creek is an American river, measuring long with a

drainage area A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, th ...

of , and is a tributary to the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is a long river located in the Southern United States, southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. Flowing through the states of Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, it begins at the confluence of Fren ...

. The river rises in Lincoln County, Tennessee, and flows south into Madison County, Alabama before flowing through Limestone County, Alabama, where most of the river's watershed is located. In fact, Limestone Creek is where Limestone County gets its name. Limestone Creek terminates in the Tennessee River at Arrowhead Landing, which is the southeasternmost point of Limestone County's Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge. The land within this watershed is predominantly agricultural, but has experienced significant recent residential growth from the city of

Huntsville Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S. The Huntsville metropolitan area had an estimated 525,465 ...

Biological diversity

Limestone Creek is a host to several species of fish, birds, and mammals. Fish species include '' Micropterus coosae'' (redeye bass), '' Ambloplites rupestris'' (rock bass), several species of ''

Lepomis ''Lepomis'' or true sunfish is a genus of North American freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Centrarchidae in the order (biology), order Centrarchiformes. The generic name (biology), generic name ''Lepomis'' derives from the Greek l ...

'' (sunfish), '' Ictalurus punctatus'' (channel catfish), and '' Perca flavescens'' (yellow perch). Sightings of

great blue heron The great blue heron (''Ardea herodias'') is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America, as well as far northwestern South America, the Caribbea ...

are common. Multiple sightings of the American alligator ('' Alligator mississippiensis'') have been reported, especially near the mouth of the river in Limestone Bay, which is the confluence of Limestone Creek with the Tennessee River. There is evidence of beaver presence in the area where Limestone Creek first enters Limestone County and squirrels are abundant near the banks.

References

USGS Gauge Site Data
{{authority control Rivers of Alabama Rivers of Tennessee Rivers of Madison County, Alabama Rivers of Limestone County, Alabama Huntsville-Decatur, AL Combined Statistical Area Rivers of Lincoln County, Tennessee

Biological diversity

See also

References