THERE IS NO PHYSICAL CACHE ON THE ISLAND. BOATERS CAN PARK AT THE SHORE BUT PEOPLE ARE NOT ALLOWED TO WALK ON THE ISLAND. DO NOT GET OFF YOUR BOAT FOR THIS EARTHCACHE
YOU WILL NEED A BOAT FOR THIS EARTHCACHE
Welcome to Gaillard Island in Mobile Bay
Gaillard Island is a 1,300 acres, artificially created, triangle shaped island located in Mobile Bay. It was built in 1979 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, using sand and mud dredged from the Mobile Bay ship channel and elsewhere. The island is an important site for colonial nesting seabirds and shore birds in coastal Alabama and has been the only nesting site for brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) in Alabama—first discovered in 1983
When the island was created, the Army Corp of Engineers used thirty-one million cubic yards of dredged material that was pulled from the bay and nearby land. The excavated material consisted primarily of hard red clay from the land and silty sand infused with small amounts of shell and gravel from the bottom of the bay.
Tests were performed by the Corps of Engineers to determine how to maintain the island and not allow it to dissipate into the bay. A triangular shape was designed and floating tire breakwaters were used to protect the island from erosion due to wave action. Marsh plants were used to develop an established root system to assist with long term integrity of the island. This was a state-of-the-art technique which has been widely studied, found to be effective and is now used nationwide.
The Island was originally created as a disposal island for a ship channel made to connect Mobile Bay and Theodore Industrial Park where a navy port was built. The project consisted of dredging a deep draft ship channel about 5.2 miles long, 300 ft wide and 40 ft deep. The project was controversial from an engineering and environmental standpoint. The engineers thought the island would not hold up in an open body of water and the environmentalists were concerned about the impact on the bay from an ecological standpoint. Luckily, the island has successfully held up and has become an environmental showcase, home to thousands of birds, particularly brown pelicans.
When the island was completed in 1981, various birds were noted to be inhabiting the island. In 1983 a biologist discovered four brown pelicans nesting on the island. This was the first sighting in Alabama since their decline due to hunting in the early 1900s. Pelican feathers, in that era, were used for women's hats. Further decline came in the 1940s due to the widespread use of the pesticide DDT. At that time, they were placed on both the Alabama and federal endangered species list. Partly due to increased nesting and propagation of the brown pelicans on Gaillard Island, the brown pelican was removed from the state's endangered species list in 1995, and in 2009, the brown pelican was removed from the federal endangered species list.
Today Gaillard Island is an important habitat for thousands of birds representing species of skimmers, stilts, terns, pelicans, egrets, herons, and ibis. Gaillard Island is also the only Alabama nesting site for Caspian terns, Sandwich terns, royal terns, and laughing gulls. The first recorded nesting of herring gulls occurred on Gaillard Island in 1986. The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has closely monitored the colonial nesting shore and seabirds conducting annual surveys since 1998. During the first survey, they estimated that there were 10,000 nests on the island.
Vegetation on the island is diverse and consists of saltmeadow cordgrass, saltmarsh bulrush, salt marsh cattail, and American threesquare that naturally flourished behind the berms. Originally, smooth cordgrass was the only species that was planted.
A report by the Mobile Register in mid-2011 showed that pelican populations on the island dramatically increased from 2010. The report also indicated the pelicans on the island showed no effects stemming from the 2010 BP oil spill in terms of finding a reliable food source, a previous concern from environmental officials.
DO NOT GET OFF YOUR BOAT WHEN YOU GET TO THE ISLAND. PEOPLE ARE PROHIBITED FROM WALKING ANYWHERE ON THE ISLAND. REMAIN ON YOUR BOAT FOR THIS EC
Logging requirements:
To log this cache, you will need to answer the following questions from your observations at the island. Any logs sent without the answers to these questions will be deleted.
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GO TO THE EXACT COORDINATES FOR THESE ANSWERS
1. Based on what you see, how does the island provide sanctuary for birds? Are there a lot of trees where you are? What other elements provide sanctuary here?
2. How is the shoreline set up to prevent erosion of the island?
3. Humans are not considered a threat to the island as they cannot step foot on the island. What natural elements or events are considered a threat to the island based on the geolocial location of the island?
4. Please post a photo of you or your team with the island in the background. If you do not want to include your face in the photo, please include something with your caching name in the photo. Again, stay in your boat when taking the photo and do not step foot on the island.
(OPTIONAL REQUIREMENT): In your log, tell me what kind of animal activity do you see on the island? Did you see any birds at the time of your visit?