The National Wildlife Refuge System
A Visit to Horicon Marsh
As a birder, I am attracted to our National Wildlife Refuges and try to visit new ones when I am traveling. The National Wildlife Refuge System is an incredible collection of valuable wildlife and birding spots throughout our country. What is unique about these sites is not only their beauty but the specialness they create for the visitor. Most of the refuges are free to visit and offer an auto tour so you can enjoy the nature from the comforts of your car as well as travel into parts of the refuges to see more. And even better you can bike on the auto path which usually is one way only with little traffic making it is easy to traverse. There are many hiking paths throughout the refuges and good accessibility with boardwalks and raised platforms for viewing. In comparison to busy national parks, the refuges are often sparsely attended and quiet places to observe nature.
As a United States taxpayer, you get a good bang for the buck with these places.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages an unparalleled network of public lands and waters called the National Wildlife Refuge System. With more than 560 refuges spanning the country, this system protects iconic species and provides some of the best wildlife viewing opportunities on Earth.
Here is more description of their unique work:
The National Wildlife Refuge System lands and waters serve a purpose distinct from that of other U.S. public lands: Wildlife conservation drives everything on national wildlife refuges, from the purposes for which each refuge was established, to the recreational activities offered, to the resource management tools used.
Our Mission
The mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System is to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management and, where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Our History
On March 14, 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt established Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, along Florida’s Atlantic coast, as the first unit of what would become the National Wildlife Refuge System.
One of the best well known Refuges is the Ding Darling site in Sanibel Florida where it is a big attraction for visitors and residents on the island. Many buildings and activities revolve around these Refuges providing communities with visitor centers, birding tours, biking/kayaking and educational outreach. And many refuges team up with state efforts to offer hunting opportunities. They are truly hidden gems in our public land management system and you will find them scattered throughout our country - Minnesota has 21 refuges in the state. Here is a link to find a Wildlife Refuge near you.
Last week on my way to Chicago, I made a stop at the beautiful Horicon Refuge in Wisconsin. Horicon Marsh is one of the largest freshwater marshes in the country with over 33,000 acres. It was once a glacial lake bordered now by higher hills - some hosting wind turbines.
Over 250 species of birds have been observed here including one of the rarest, the Whooping Crane, which migrates through and has nested in Horicon. There are only 836 Whooping Cranes in North America. Unlike the now abundant Sandhill Cranes, Whooping Cranes have struggled to gain back a critical population mass. Hunting and habitat loss in the 1800’s/early 1900’s decimated the population to an all-time low of 15 birds in 1941. There has been a long, concerted effort to bring back a sustainable population. This summer in Horicon, there was a nesting attempt but unfortunately the female chick died.
Although I did not see such a rarity, there were plenty of other good viewing opportunities I will highlight in the next post.