The Great River National Wildlife Refuge protects approximately along of the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
, stretching north of
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
. Three separate units are located in the
floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
, on both the
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
and
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
sides of the river.
In 1998, the Great River Refuge was designated as a globally
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
, due to its value to
shorebird
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Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflat ...
s,
songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 500 ...
s, and
waterfowl
Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...
. The refuge's proximity to St. Louis provides excellent educational opportunities to a large population.
The
Clarence Cannon National Wildlife Refuge
The Clarence Cannon National Wildlife Refuge is located in the floodplain of the Mississippi River, adjacent to Pool No. 25 in Pike County, Missouri. The refuge's diversity of habitats supports waterfowl, wading birds, shorebirds, and songbirds. ...
is also under the administration of the Great River Refuge. Great River Refuge, in turn, was formerly part of the
Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge Complex The Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge Complex was established for the protection of migratory birds including waterfowl, shorebirds, and songbirds. It is located along the Mississippi Flyway, one of the major routes for migrating waterfowl. Refug ...
, which also included:
Port Louisa,
Two Rivers, and
Middle Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge
The Middle Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge is located on the Mississippi River downstream from St. Louis, Missouri. It is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge Complex.
The ref ...
s.
History
Long Island Division, near Quincy, Illinois, was part of the original Mark Twain Refuge when it was established in 1958 under the
Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
.
The division is General Plan Land owned by the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
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and managed by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with oth ...
under a cooperative agreement signed in 1963. In 1986, another cooperative agreement was signed with the Corps of Engineers adding the Bear Creek Unit to the division.
Funds from the sale of migratory waterfowl stamps were used to acquire fee title land in 1965 and 1976 for the Delair Division. The division lies completely within the -long
Sny Agricultural Levee District and is separated from the river by the main-line Sny levee.
Fox Island Division is the most recent addition to Great River Refuge. Once again, fee title land was purchased with funds from the sale of migratory waterfowl stamps in 1989, 1996 and 1997. Purchases made in the 1990s were in response to the record flood in 1993, which created an opportunity to purchase many hard-hit floodplain areas at lower prices from willing sellers.
Great River Refuge also administers two fee title tracts that were formerly
Farmer's Home Administration easements. These lands include the Winters tract in
Lewis County and the Owens tract in
Clark County in Missouri.
References
Refuge profileRefuge website
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Important Bird Areas of Missouri
National Wildlife Refuges in Missouri
National Wildlife Refuges in Illinois
Protected areas established in 1958
Protected areas of Adams County, Illinois
Protected areas of Lewis County, Missouri
Protected areas of Clark County, Missouri
Protected areas on the Mississippi River
Protected areas of Pike County, Illinois
Wetlands of Illinois
Wetlands of Missouri
Landforms of Adams County, Illinois
Landforms of Lewis County, Missouri
Landforms of Clark County, Missouri
Landforms of Pike County, Illinois
1958 establishments in Illinois
1958 establishments in Missouri
Important Bird Areas of Illinois