San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex facts for kids
The San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex is a special place in central California. It's found in Merced County and Stanislaus County. This complex has four federal National Wildlife Refuges, which are like safe homes for wildlife. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service takes care of them.
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What is the San Luis Wildlife Complex?
The San Luis Complex is made up of four main areas:
- The San Luis National Wildlife Refuge
- The Merced National Wildlife Refuge
- The San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge
- The Grasslands Wildlife Management Area
Together, these areas cover about 45,000 acres (182 square kilometers) of wetlands, grasslands, and riverbank habitats. They also protect over 90,000 acres (364 square kilometers) of private land to help wildlife. The main office for the complex is in Los Banos, California.
A Stop on the Pacific Flyway
This complex is located right in the middle of the Pacific Flyway. This "flyway" is like a superhighway in the sky for birds! Millions of birds use it to travel long distances during their yearly migrations. Many of these birds, especially waterfowl (like ducks and geese), stop here each winter.
About a million waterfowl visit the complex and nearby lands every winter. There are 30 different kinds of waterfowl here! Some of the most common ones you might see include:
- Ross's geese
- Aleutian cackling geese
- Snow geese
- Green-winged teal
- Mallards
- Northern pintails
- Gadwalls
- American wigeons
- Northern shovelers
- Greater white-fronted geese
This area is very important because it has the largest group of connected freshwater wetlands left in California. It's recognized worldwide as a special place for birds and wetlands.
Wildlife Refuge Units
San Luis National Wildlife Refuge
The San Luis National Wildlife Refuge covers more than 26,600 acres (108 square kilometers). It has wetlands, forests along rivers, native grasslands, and special pools called vernal pools.
One exciting thing to see here is a healthy group of tule elk. You can often spot them from one of the three driving tours. The refuge is home to many birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and plants. Some of these, like the California tiger salamander and San Joaquin kit fox, are endangered species, meaning they are at risk of disappearing forever.
The refuge started in 1966 when the first piece of land was bought. The money came from Federal Duck Stamp funds, which help protect places for migratory waterfowl. Over time, the refuge has grown and now includes six parts: San Luis, East Bear Creek, West Bear Creek, Freitas, Blue Goose, and Kesterson. The San Joaquin River flows through the eastern part of the refuge.
Birds of San Luis NWR
This refuge is a major winter home and resting stop for huge numbers of waterfowl, shorebirds, and other waterbirds. Large groups of ducks like northern shovelers, mallards, gadwalls, wigeons, green-winged teal, cinnamon teal, northern pintails, ring-billed ducks, canvasbacks, and ruddy ducks, along with geese like snow geese, Ross's geese, and greater white-fronted geese, gather here. They love the mix of seasonal and permanent wetlands that make up a quarter of the refuge.
Most waterfowl stay until mid-April before flying north to their breeding areas. Some mallards, gadwalls, and cinnamon teal stay all spring and summer to raise their young on the refuge.
Shorebirds, including sandpipers and plovers, can be seen by the tens of thousands from autumn through spring. You might see large groups of dunlin, long-billed dowitchers, least sandpipers, and western sandpipers feeding in shallow wetlands. Long-billed curlews use both wetlands and grasslands. More than 25 different kinds of shorebirds have been seen at San Luis NWR!
Tule Elk Recovery
The San Luis NWR has been very important in helping the Tule Elk recover. Tule elk are a type of elk found only in California and they don't migrate. Before the mid-1800s, there were about 500,000 Tule Elk in California. But because of too much hunting and losing their homes, they almost disappeared by the early 1900s. Some people say there were only 10-20 left!
In 1974, a group of 18 elk was brought to a large fenced area at the San Luis NWR. They have done very well there. Elk from this group are sometimes moved to start new herds or join other Tule Elk herds across California. This is a true wildlife success story! The number of Tule Elk in California has now grown to over 4,000 animals.
Other Wildlife and Activities
The refuge also has large areas of dry land called uplands. These areas have special plants like native bunchgrasses, other grasses, wildflowers, and shrubs. Trees like the valley oak, cottonwood, and willow grow along the rivers.
In these areas, you might see coyotes, desert cottontails, ground squirrels, western meadowlarks, yellow-billed magpies, and loggerhead shrikes. Birds of prey like northern harriers and white-tailed kites fly over the plants. You can also often spot great blue herons, great egrets, and white-faced ibises throughout the refuge.
The refuge has three driving tours with nature trails and viewing decks. These are great for watching and photographing wildlife. You can also go fishing in certain spots and there's a large waterfowl hunting program.
Merced National Wildlife Refuge
The Merced National Wildlife Refuge is in Merced County. It has four parts: Merced Unit, Arena Plains Unit, Snobird Unit, and Lonetree Unit.
It covers about 10,262 acres (41.5 square kilometers) of wetlands, native grasslands, vernal pools, and riparian zone areas. It was created in 1951 to attract wintering waterfowl away from nearby farms, where they were eating crops. Over the years, changes in farming and refuge management have helped reduce these problems.
Winter Home for Cranes and Geese
This refuge is home to the largest winter groups of lesser sandhill cranes and Ross's geese along the Pacific Flyway. Every autumn, over 20,000 cranes and 60,000 geese fly all the way from Alaska and Canada to spend six months here. They mix with thousands of other visiting waterfowl, waterbirds, and shorebirds, making the refuge a truly amazing sight in winter.
The refuge also provides important places for birds to raise their young, like Swainson's hawks, tricolored blackbirds, marsh wrens, mallards, gadwalls, cinnamon teal, and burrowing owls. Tricolored blackbirds are songbirds that nest in large groups, sometimes with over 25,000 pairs! You can also see coyotes, ground squirrels, desert cottontails, beavers, and long-tailed weasels all year long.
Vernal Pools and Wildflowers
Vernal pools are another special kind of wetland at the Merced NWR. These shallow pools form when winter rainwater fills natural dips in the ground that have clay soil underneath. The pools become full of life when they fill with water. Tiny fairy and tadpole shrimp hatch from eggs that were in the soil from the year before. The endangered tiger salamander and other amphibians lay their eggs and raise their tadpoles here. The huge number of small water creatures in these pools provides food for birds that are wintering or migrating, helping them get ready for their long flight north to their breeding grounds.
When spring comes and the water in the vernal pools dries up, wildflowers bloom. You'll see goldfields, purple owl's clover, and butter-and-egg flowers. They grow in colorful rings around the pool basins. Once the vernal pools are completely dry, Downingia and Colusa grass (a rare California plant) appear in the dry basins. This yearly burst of color made John Muir say the valley floor was the "floweriest part of the world" he had ever seen.
Farm Management for Wildlife
Besides managing natural habitats, the Merced NWR has about 300 acres (1.2 square kilometers) of corn and winter wheat crops, and over 500 acres (2 square kilometers) of watered pasture for wildlife. These farmed areas provide important food (like carbohydrates) for the tens of thousands of geese and sandhill cranes that spend their winter in Merced County. This food helps the birds have enough energy for their long journey to their northern breeding grounds. Local farmers work with the refuge to prepare the ground, plant seeds, and water these crops. The refuge also uses a program where local ranchers and farmers graze cattle and sheep. This helps control unwanted weeds, keeps grasslands short for geese to eat, and helps native grasslands grow well.
San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge
The San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge is in Stanislaus County and San Joaquin County. It covers over 7,000 acres (28 square kilometers) of woodlands along rivers, wetlands, and grasslands. These areas are home to many different kinds of wildlife native to California's Central Valley. The refuge is located where three big rivers – the San Joaquin, Tuolumne, and Stanislaus Rivers – meet. This creates an important pathway for wildlife. The refuge was started in 1987 to help protect endangered species and migratory birds.
Aleutian Cackling Geese Recovery
This refuge has played a big part in the recovery of Aleutian cackling geese. It's a very important wintering area for them. By 1975, there were fewer than 1,000 of these geese in total. But by removing animals that preyed on their nests (like non-native foxes) from their breeding grounds in Alaska's Aleutian Islands, and by making their winter homes better, their numbers have grown to over 100,000! They are no longer considered an endangered species. Restoring wetlands and providing grasslands and croplands at this refuge has created perfect winter homes for these geese.
Restoring Riparian Forests
It's believed that 95 percent of the San Joaquin Valley's riparian woodlands (forests along rivers) were lost during the late 1800s and 1900s because of changes in how land and water were used. However, this refuge is working to bring back this important habitat.
Inside the San Joaquin NWR, there's one of California's largest projects to restore riparian forests. About 400,000 native trees like willows, cottonwoods, and oaks have been planted across 1,700 acres (6.9 square kilometers) of river floodplain. This has created the largest connected area of riparian woodland in the San Joaquin Valley.
This important woodland is home to many rare animals. Swainson's hawks build their nests in the tops of tall cottonwood trees. Herons and cormorants gather in large groups to nest in the tops of big oak trees. Endangered riparian brush rabbits have been brought back to this restored habitat from groups raised in captivity. These woodlands also support many different songbirds that breed here, including grosbeaks, orioles, flycatchers, and warblers. You might even see least Bell's vireos, a threatened species that last nested in the San Joaquin Valley over 50 years ago.
There's a wildlife viewing platform along Beckwith Road. It's a popular spot to watch the Aleutian cackling geese and other waterbirds from October through March.
Grasslands Wildlife Management Area
The Grasslands Wildlife Management Area (GWMA) was created by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1979. It's made up of privately owned lands where the government has bought "conservation easements." These easements protect wetland and grassland habitats and stop them from being turned into farms or other uses that aren't good for migratory birds and other wildlife. The landowners still manage their properties every day. Most of these easement properties are wetlands managed for waterfowl hunting. Since 1979, over 65,000 acres (263 square kilometers) have been protected this way.
The GWMA is in western Merced County, California, within the San Joaquin River basin. It has the largest remaining group of connected wetlands in the Central Valley. It's divided into an eastern and western part by the San Joaquin River. In the middle of the western part is the Grassland Resource Conservation District (GRCD), an area of 70,000 acres (283 square kilometers) of private wetlands and grasslands. There are also over 30,600 acres (124 square kilometers) of federal National Wildlife Refuges and state Wildlife Management Areas here.
These private wetlands make up 30% of all the wetlands left in California's Central Valley. They are incredibly important for the waterfowl that use the Pacific Flyway. Over 60 million "duck use-days" and 3 million "goose use-days" happen here every year. (A "use-day" means one bird spending one day in the area.) The wetlands have many different habitats, including marshlands that flood seasonally, semi-permanent marsh, riverbank habitats, wet meadows, vernal pools, native uplands, pastures, and native grasslands. This variety of habitats supports birds of prey, shorebirds, wading birds, and other wildlife. Several plants and animals that are listed as endangered or threatened by federal and state governments live here and benefit from the habitat protection provided by the easement program.
