Maple River National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the world's premiere system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife and plants...

 in 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....

. It is managed under Kulm Wetland Management District

Kulm Wetland Management District

Located in south-central North Dakota, Kulm Wetland Management District was established in 1971. Located in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America, Kulm Wetland Management District provides breeding, nesting, and brood rearing areas for many species of waterfowl and other migratory birds...

.

Maple River National Wildlife Refuge was established by Executive Order 8162, signed on June 12, 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...

. The Refuge boundaries encompass 1120 acres (4.5 km²) of private land. A system of management easement

Easement

An easement is a certain right to use the real property of another without possessing it.Easements are helpful for providing pathways across two or more pieces of property or allowing an individual to fish in a privately owned pond...

s allows the District flood land within the river channel and to restrict hunting

Hunting

Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...

, trapping and other harassment of wildlife.

The District manages two dam

Dam

A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...

s on Maple River National Wildlife Refuge. A low level dam on the Maple River

Maple River (North Dakota)

The Maple River is a tributary of the Sheyenne River, about long, in the Red River Valley of eastern North Dakota in the United States. Via the Sheyenne River, the Red River of the North, Lake Winnipeg and the Nelson River, the Maple is part of the watershed of Hudson Bay.-Course:The Maple River...

 raises the level of Maple River and floods an adjacent 90 acres (364,217.4 m²) marsh

Marsh

In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....

 area. A dam on Maple River marsh holds water in the marsh as flow in Maple River drops following spring run-off. Both the river channel and the marsh provide breeding, nesting and brood rearing habitat for many marsh dependent birds and other wildlife. Maple River is near enough to the James River to be part of the migration corridor for many species of birds.

Maple River National Wildlife Refuge is located in central Dickey County, North Dakota

Dickey County, North Dakota

-Major highways:* U.S. Highway 281* North Dakota Highway 1* North Dakota Highway 11* North Dakota Highway 56-National protected areas:*Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge*Maple River National Wildlife Refuge-Demographics:...

. From Ellendale

Ellendale, North Dakota

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,559 people, 603 households, and 355 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,083.6 people per square mile . There were 750 housing units at an average density of 521.3 per square mile...

 the Refuge is located 4 ½ miles east on North Dakota Highway 11, then 5 miles (8 km) north and 1 miles (1.6 km) east on county and township roads.

A 414 acres (1.7 km²) portion of Maple River National Wildlife Refuge was purchased by the Service in the early 1960s with funds from the Small Wetland Acquisition Program. Lands purchased with Duck Stamp funds are delineated with Waterfowl Production Area (WPA) signs instead of the familiar blue goose Refuge sign.

Refuge portions of Maple River National Wildlife Refuge are closed to all public use. Portions of the Refuge owned by the Service and marked with WPA signs are open to public use. Hunting, wildlife observation and photography are available to the public on the WPA part of the Refuge.