Presquile National Wildlife Refuge in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

is one of four refuges that comprise the

Eastern Virginia Rivers National Wildlife Refuge Complex The Eastern Virginia Rivers National Wildlife Refuge Complex is a complex of four National Wildlife Refuges in Virginia whose management is overseen by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The four refuges are: *James River National Wildl ...

. The refuge is a island in the

James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...

, located approximately south of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. It is located in the easternmost part of Chesterfield County, northeast of Hopewell. In 1953, A. D Williams, a Richmond tobacco magnate, willed a parcel of land called Presquile to the

Virginia Commission of Game and Inland Fisheries The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Virginia that regulates wildlife conservation. History The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries was created on June 17, 1916, under the ...

for use as a wildlife refuge. Previously Presquile had functioned as a farm and plantation. The main house at Presquile was built in the 1760s but was demolished in 1964. Established to protect habitat for wintering waterfowl and other migratory birds, Presquile is an important component in the network of refuges on and around the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

, the largest estuary in the United States. Presquile historically provided important habitat for wintering

Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), or Canadian goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is o ...

that breed along

James Bay James Bay (french: Baie James; cr, ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, Wînipekw, dirty water) is a large body of water located on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean, of which James Bay is the southernmost par ...

in eastern

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The refuge is also home to nesting and roosting

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 ...

s. The refuge is primarily hardwood

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

, with a fringe of

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

and of upland fields.

References

External links

Presquile National Wildlife Refuge
* {{authority control National Wildlife Refuges in Virginia Wetlands of Virginia Protected areas of Chesterfield County, Virginia Protected areas established in 1953 1953 establishments in Virginia Landforms of Chesterfield County, Virginia