Contact

Shelley Alexander - Shelley.Alexander@dep.state.fl.us
Northwest Florida Aquatic Preserves Office
1600 Garcon Point Road
Milton, FL 32583
(850) 983-5359 or (850) 983-5361
Office hours: 8:00am - 6:00pm CST

Description of Site

Rocky Bayou is a fresh to brackish water system located along the northern edge of Choctawhatchee Bay. This preserve was designated as such for the primary purpose of preserving the biological resources in the area and maintaining these resources in an essentially natural condition. The Bayou receives freshwater input from two creeks, Rocky Creek and East Turkey Creek, and several smaller steephead streams. Rocky and East Turkey Creeks are two of only six streams, all within the Choctawhatchee Bay System, that support the endangered Okaloosa darter (Etheostoma okaloosae). This scenic preserve is fringed by forested wetlands, marshes, and low bluffs, with grassbeds occurring below the mean high water line. The preserve provides food and habitat for numerous fish and wildlife, and several designated species are known to occur in the preserve. A bald eagle’s nest has been active and produced fledglings for over five years.

The aquatic preserve is a hot spot for recreational activity due to the calm, somewhat freshwater and its proximity to the community of Niceville. The uplands bordering the aquatic preserve consist primarily of residential and public managed areas. Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Recreation Area and Eglin Air Force Base manage almost half of the uplands adjacent to the preserve which help buffer impacts to water quality.

Established

1970

Location

County: Okaloosa County
Cities nearby: Niceville, Ft. Walton Beach, Eglin Air Force Base
Adjacent roads: Hwy. 20, Mid-Bay Bridge

Size

480 acres

Watershed

Choctawhatchee Bay Watershed (includes Choctawhatchee River, Turkey and Rocky creeks which feed directly into the preserve, and others).

Size of watershed is 5349 square miles (3,423,360 acres)

Habitat

Submerged habitat

Salt marsh - needlerush, cordgrass, sawgrass, sedges

Floodplain marsh - Sagittaria, maidencane, pickerelweed, buttonbush, waxmyrtle, sawgrass, bulrush, sedges, spadderdock

Bottomland forest - sweetgum, blackgum, red maple, sweetbay, river birch, black titi, red titi, Atlantic white cedar, red cedar, bald and pond cypress, gallberry, wild azalea, orange azalea, and several pine, oak, and holly species

Seagrasses- widgeon grass (Ruppia maritima), southern naiad (Najas guadalupensis), bladderwort (Utricularia spp.), Sagittaria kurziana

Estuarine open water

Adjacent upland habitat

Baygall/ floodplain swamp - loblolly bay, sweetbay, red maple, slash pine, laurel oak, bald cypress, Atlantic white cedar

Steephead stream ravine - Florida anise, sweet gallberry, fetterbush, American beech, southern magnolia, fetterbush, highbush blueberry, swamp azalea

Tidal marsh - sawgrass, giant reed, black needlerush, knotgrass, saltmeadow cordgrass, bulrush, sedges

Mesic flatwoods - wiregrass, slash pine, sweet bay, loblolly bay, saw palmetto, gallberry

Scrub - scrub oaks, scrub pines, Conradina, wiregrass

Ecological Importance

The marsh is a nursery area for fish, birds and wildlife. There is an active bald eagle’s nest within the preserve. The wetlands provide filtering of pollutants and flood control. The steephead streams provide the only habitat for the endangered Okaloosa darter.

Rare / Endangered Species

State listings are taken from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission or as with plants Florida Department of Agriculture. Federal listings are taken from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. E= Endangered. T= Threatened. T (s/a)= Threatened due to similarity in appearance. SSC= Species of Special Concern. UR= Under review. n/a= information not available or no designation listed.

Geomorphic Features

There are three steephead stream ravines, which are endemic to the panhandle of Florida.

Archaeological Features

Most of the activity within the area consists of the Archaic Indian cultures (9,500 to 3,500 years ago).

Uses

Recreational:

Swimming, skiing, fishing, boating, canoe/kayaking, bird watching.

Commercial:

Fishing.

Educational:

Educational programs for all ages are available through the Northwest Florida Aquatic Preserve office. They can vary from slide shows to field trips. Also, the Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Recreation Area has interpretive programs and hiking trails available.

Research:

University of West Florida (UWF) is within 70 miles. Extensive research has been done on the endangered Okaloosa darter in the steephead streams surrounding the preserve.

Adjacent Land Use:

Residential; Eglin Air Force Base (air force activities, recreational and resource management); Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Recreation Area (recreational and resource management).

Management Status

Designation:

Aquatic Preserve, Outstanding Florida Water (OFW).
Designated as an EPA Gulf of Mexico Ecological Management Site

Ownership / Manager

State of Florida, Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas

Management / Research Activities

• The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is tracking the Gulf sturgeon as part of the recovery plan for the threatened fish.
• Pilot study to assess marsh restoration feasibility conducted by Northwest Florida Aquatic Preserves.
• UWF studied the effectiveness of artificial reefs to attract fish and protect transplanted seagrass.
• UWF conducted water quality monitoring of Puddinhead Lake (a dammed steephead ravine).
• Choctawhatchee Bay Audubon Society does a Christmas bird count annually.

Management issues and threats:

Potential loss of submerged and emergent vegetation due to increased residential housing along the preserve boundary. High use of the preserve as a water skiing area may have an impact on the natural submerged and emergent vegetation.

Management needs:

Assess in detail whether heavy boat activity has an impact on submerged and emergent vegetation.

References

Chafin, L. G., A. R. Schotz. 1995. Rare Plant Survey of Eglin Air Force Base, 1992-1994. Final Report. 95 pp.

Department of Natural Resources. 1991. Rocky Bayou Aquatic Preserve Management Plan. 98 pp.

Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission. 1997. Florida’s Endangered Species and Species of Special Concern. 15 pp.

Northwest Florida Water Management District. 1996. The Choctawhatchee River and Bay System Surface Water Improvement and Management Plan.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1997. Okaloosa Darter (Etheostoma okaloosae) Technical/ Agency Draft Revised Recovery Plan. Atlanta, Georgia. 21 pp.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission. 1995. Gulf Sturgeon Recovery Plan. Atlanta, Ga. 170 pp.

For more information about the Rocky Bayou Aquatic Preserve, or to request a copy of the Choctawhatchee Bay Boater’s Guide (a guide with locations of access points to Choctawhatchee Bay and natural resource information) contact: NWF Aquatic Preserves - see above.