Big Alabama and Little Alabama Bayous are now cut off by levees, but they were once bustling waterways used by fishermen, trappers, hunters, and others. The vanished town of Sherburne once stood on the banks of Big Alabama Bayou. The bayou's waters remain a beautiful example of Louisiana swampland and provide habitat for a wide variety of swamp creatures. Millions of migratory songbirds use this and other swamps as a pathway between their northern breeding grounds and southern wintering grounds, while some winter or even nest here. Because songbirds often stay hidden in brush or high in the forest canopy, they are usually easier to hear than to see.