As moonlight dapples the rippling waters of the Cahaba River, a nocturnal moth flits among clusters of burgeoning starburst blooms rooted in the rocky shoals. Come daybreak, nature enthusiasts flock to rural Alabama’s Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge, 45 miles southwest of Birmingham, to experience the fleeting magnificence of the bright-white Cahaba lilies that sway in the shallows May through June and prompt an annual small-town jamboree.
“There’s no place like it. You come out of the Appalachian Mountains, and you’re heading to the Gulf of Mexico, and