Great Rivers Partnership - LMR

Bayou Bartholomew

Bayou Bartholomew begins in central Arkansas and flows about 359 miles southward, entering Louisiana and emptying into the Ouachita River. Said to be the world’s longest bayou, it has never been channelized. Its 1.1 million-acre watershed, which has been designated a priority conservation site by The Nature Conservancy’s Lower Mississippi River Program, still contains bottomland forests that harbor important populations of many species, including the threatened Louisiana black bear, as well as high-quality examples of numerous plant communities.

Although some drainage canals and levees have been constructed within the watershed to support agricultural activities, much of it continues to be exposed annually to significant over-bank flooding, and the flooding cycle, sediment deposition, fish stock replenishment and other ecological factors are considered to closely approximate historic conditions. Because of the watershed’s size, current conditions and relatively intact water regimes, its species and communities are considered; with the support appropriate conservation actions, to be very viable.

Strategies and Progress

Much of Bayou Bartholomew’s watershed has been deforested and converted to croplands, and a significant portion of its remaining forestland has been managed over decades for timber production, thus altering to some extent its forest composition and structure. Other conservation concerns include excess sedimentation, environmental stresses from biocide and irrigation practices, and illegal dumping.

The Nature Conservancy has developed a strong partnership with the non-profit Bayou Bartholomew Alliance. Since its incorporation in 1995, the alliance has been instrumental in the development of a restoration plan, including action strategies, for the bayou’s watershed. Plan goals include preserving water quality, enhancing wildlife and fish habitat and related recreational pursuits, improving benefits to landowners adjacent to the bayou and educating the public about the bayou’s ecological significance.

Key accomplishments to date, accomplished by the alliance with the aid of many partners, have included the planting of more than 1.2 million native tree seedlings, the removal of 140 tons of trash dumped illegally along the bayou, financial assistance provided to landowners enrolled in the federal Conservation Reserve and Wetlands Reserve programs, and purchasing and then renting to landowners no-till drills, equipment that contributes to sustainable agriculture.

Originally focused on the Arkansas portion of the stream, the alliance is now, assisted through its partnership with the Conservancy, expanding its efforts to encompass the bayou’s entire, interstate watershed.

Key conservation targets at Bayou Bartholomew are its freshwater aquatic community, including mussels and fish, and the bottomland hardwood communities that help maintain the water quality required by aquatic species. The Conservancy’s strategies for the basin include restoring natural water regimes, reforestation of marginal agricultural lands and encouraging sustainable agricultural and forestry practices.

What's to Gain?

Bayou Bartholomew and its watershed shelters a remarkable assemblage of 117 species of freshwater fish and at least 40 species of mussels, including more than half of all mussel species known in Louisiana and at least three mussel species currently listed by the federal government as endangered or threatened.

Bayou Bartholomew

LMR Program

Priority Sites

Quick Links

Bayou Bartholomew Map

The Nature Conservancy and its partners work at sites along the entire length of the Mississippi River, from its headwaters in Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico.