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Even if you don鈥檛 have much interest in seeing wildlife, national wildlife refuges are great places to reconnect with the natural world.
鈥淪ome of it is just to experience being outside,鈥� says Cynthia Martinez, chief of the National Wildlife Refuge System. 鈥淵ou have to recognize that I鈥檓 from the Southwest. I have to see the sun. I get energy from the sun. I think people get energy from outdoor areas, and I think it鈥檚 an opportunity to clear your mind. It鈥檚 an opportunity to reflect. And it鈥檚 an opportunity to maybe see or experience something that you weren鈥檛 expecting. That鈥檚 one of the beauties of going to a national wildlife refuge national wildlife refuge
A national wildlife refuge is typically a contiguous area of land and water managed by the鈥疷.S. Fish and Wildlife Service鈥� for the conservation and, where appropriate, restoration of fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Learn more about national wildlife refuge . I think that when people go, they can come back saying, 鈥榃ow, I didn鈥檛 even know . . . fill-in-the-blank.鈥� But if they had never gone there, they wouldn鈥檛 have had that experience.鈥�
If you are interested in increasing the odds that you鈥檒l see native wildlife behaving naturally at a national wildlife refuge, Martinez has two important pieces of advice:
- Factor time of year and time of day into your planning.
- Do a bit of research before you go.
Timing
Time of year is especially important at national wildlife refuges.
鈥淚f you go to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico in the summer, you鈥檙e not going to see much,鈥� says Martinez. 鈥淚f you go in November, you will see a spectacle of wildlife and birds covering every part of that place. There鈥檚 a real seasonality to our refuges.鈥�
When planning a visit to a national wildlife refuge, time of year is vital because wildlife behavior patterns are seasonal. Some refuges provide nesting habitat for wildlife. Others provide wintering habitat. Birds, fish and other wildlife move seasonally. Spring and fall migration periods are particularly good times to see birds on the move along the : Atlantic, Mississippi, Central and Pacific.
Time of day also matters. The odds of a visitor seeing wildlife increase during the quiet stillness of early morning or early evening. To hunt more easily, to evade predators and/or to avoid midday heat, many animals wait for dawn or dusk to be most active.
As the advises, 鈥淗ardly anything else you do will enhance your opportunity to see and hear wildlife more than following the simple PEQ rule: Be patient, early and q耻颈别迟.鈥�
What Activities Are Available?
鈥淵ou鈥檒l want to do a little bit of research,鈥� says Martinez. 鈥淲hat does the national wildlife refuge offer?鈥�
You鈥檒l want to find out if the refuge has walking trails, and what kind of trails they are. Easy? Difficult? Hilly? Flat? On a well-defined boardwalk or in remote and rocky location?
What wildlife species are at the refuge? Are photography blinds available? Does the refuge offer paddling, fishing, hunting, bicycling? Does the refuge have a visitor center full of hands-on exhibits, or does it simply have a contact station with basic information? Does the refuge have an auto tour route on which you can glimpse wildlife from your vehicle?
More Ways to Get the Most Out of a Visit
Here are a handful of other tips to make a visit to a national wildlife refuge most enjoyable:
- Dress and prepare for the conditions.
Wear appropriate clothing, sensible shoes, hat, etc. Bring water, sunscreen and, sometimes, insect repellent. - Don鈥檛 disturb wildlife.
Ideally, be as stealthy as possible. 鈥淚f you want to see wildlife in their native places and watch them in their natural behavior,鈥� says Martinez, 鈥渢hen you have to take a bit of a back seat in order to see some pretty amazing things that wildlife do.鈥� For your own safety, keep your distance from wildlife. - Be respectful of the land and waters.
鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of like walking into somebody鈥檚 house,鈥� says Martinez. 鈥淭hink about it as we humans are entering into a place of wildlife.鈥� - Ask questions.
鈥淎sk the folks in the visitor center or at the visitor contact station: When is the best time to visit a given national wildlife refuge, what would we be able to see, and where would be the best place to see it?鈥� says Martinez. 鈥淵ou have to recognize that, at some places, you might have to spend a bit of time getting off the beaten path to actually see some of that. But sometimes the things that are a little harder to get to can be the most rewarding.鈥� - Use your senses.
Listen, in particular, to nature. Early morning at a national wildlife refuge can be a soothing symphony of songbirds calling, frogs croaking, waterfowl cackling, fish jumping and even vegetation quaking or creaking. Heightening your senses will help you spot or identify wildlife. - Use social media.
Many national wildlife refuges have Facebook or Twitter accounts. To get a sense of the refuge and to see timely announcements regarding the often-changing conditions on refuge lands and waters, follow refuges on social media. - Check ahead to see if the refuge allows pets.
Be aware that pets can intimidate wildlife. - Don鈥檛 assume refuges are far away.
Look close to home. More than 100 national wildlife refuges are with 25 miles of urban areas with a population of 250,000 or more.
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