Johnson Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of North Dakota

North Dakota

North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....

. The Refuge was established by Executive Order 8122, signed on May 10, 1939 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...

 to be set aside as "a refuge and breeding grounds for migratory birds and other wildlife."

Johnson Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a part of the Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge Complex

Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge Complex

The Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge Complex consists of numerous National Wildlife Refuges and Wetland Management Districts in the U.S. state of North Dakota. Altogether, twelve separate areas are in the complex, with the Chase Lake Prairie Project being the largest at...

, and is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge is privately owned under a conservation easement

Easement refuge

An easement refuge is a special type of National Wildlife Refuge under the auspices of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.On an easement refuge, the Refuge boundaries encompass private land but the Fish and Wildlife Service does not own the land...

 which allows the U.S. Government to enforce federal laws regarding refuge protection statutes. The refuge is not open to the public, but nearby roads permit some wildlife viewing from a distance.
More than a dozen species of ducks and wading birds have been documented. The most interesting waterfowl usually seen include the Canada geese, snow geese, tundra swans.

Mammals such as white-tailed deer

White-tailed Deer

The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...

are common, especially in the winter.