D'Arbonne National Wildlife Refuge is a
National Wildlife Refuge
National Wildlife Refuge System is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the system of public lands and waters set aside to c ...
of the United States located north of
West Monroe, Louisiana. It is in
Ouachita and
Union Parishes on either side of Bayou D'Arbonne near its confluence with the
Ouachita River. It lies on the western edge of the
Mississippi River alluvial valley
Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...
. It was established in 1975 to protect bottomland hardwoods and provide wintering habitat for migratory waterfowl.
[ D'Arbonne is one of four refuges managed in the North Louisiana Refuges Complex.
]
Ecology
The refuge is bisected by 13 miles of Bayou D'Arbonne and is crisscrossed by numerous creeks, slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
s, and oxbow lake
An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is cut off, creating a free-standing body of water. In South Texas, oxbows left by the Rio Grande are called '' resacas''. In Australia, oxbow lakes are call ...
s. Cypress swamps and bottomland hardwood and upland forests provide several types of habitat for native plants and animals. Local species include the American alligator, Rafinesque's big-eared bat
Rafinesque's big-eared bat (''Corynorhinus rafinesquii''), sometimes known as the southeastern big-eared bat, is a species of vesper bat native to the southeastern United States.
Description
As its name implies, this species has ears over an in ...
, the bald eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
, and the red-cockaded woodpecker.
In years of normal or above rainfall, the refuge's bottomland hardwood forest is a very important overflow area for the Ouachita River basin. High water levels, which usually occur between January and May, can flood up to 87% of the refuge. The wetland forests not only provide habitat to wetland-dependent wildlife, but they also reduce damage from flooding in developed areas. They filter silt and pollutants from the water and they provide recharge areas for aquifers.
Recreation
No camping is allowed on the refuge. Camping areas can be found in nearby Lake D'Arbonne State Park.
See also
* List of National Wildlife Refuges: Louisiana
References
*
External links
D'Arbonne National Wildlife Refuge
{{authority control
National Wildlife Refuges in Louisiana
Protected areas of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana
Protected areas of Union Parish, Louisiana
Protected areas established in 1986
1986 establishments in Louisiana
Landforms of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana
Landforms of Union Parish, Louisiana
Wetlands and bayous of Louisiana