The Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge Complex is a wildlife preserve, one of the 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...

s operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service

United States Fish and Wildlife Service

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...

. Headquartered in Ridgefield, Washington

Ridgefield, Washington

Ridgefield is a city in the pastoral, rolling-hills countryside of northern Clark County, Washington, United States. The population was 4,763 at the 2010 census....

, it oversees the management of five refuges in the southwestern part of the state including: Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Conboy Lake NWR

Conboy Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Conboy Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located on the east slope of the Cascade Mountains at the base of Mount Adams in southern Washington state....

, and three refuges in the Columbia River Gorge

Columbia River Gorge

The Columbia River Gorge is a canyon of the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Up to deep, the canyon stretches for over as the river winds westward through the Cascade Range forming the boundary between the State of Washington to the north and Oregon to the south...

 - Franz Lake

Franz Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Franz Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located in southwest Washington State, within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. The refuge provides a variety of habitats including riparian wetlands, Columbia River riparian corridor blocks, transitional woodlands from lower elevation willows,...

, Pierce

Pierce National Wildlife Refuge

Pierce National Wildlife Refuge is located in southwest Washington within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. It encompasses wetlands and uplands along the north shore of the Columbia River west of the town of North Bonneville...

 and Steigerwald Lake NWR

Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Located on the Columbia River, east of Vancouver, Washington, the Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge consists of historic riverine flood plain habitat, semi-permanent wetlands, cottonwood-dominated riparian corridors, pastures, and remnant stands of Oregon white oak.The refuge lies partly...

.

Ridgefield NWR, located in the westernmost part of Clark County

Clark County, Washington

Clark County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Washington, across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon.Clark County was the first county of Washington, named after William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition...

, has a total of 5,150 acres (20.8 km²) of marshes, grasslands and woodland

Woodland

Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...

s. Preservation of the natural Columbia River

Columbia River

The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...

 floodplain

Floodplain

A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...

 is the management objective of the Carty, 2 mile (3 km) self guided hiking trail, Roth and Ridgeport Dairy units. The River 'S', 4.2 mile (7 km) auto tour route and 1.2 mile (2 km) seasonal hiking trail, and Bachelor Island

Bachelor Island (Washington)

Bachelor Island is an island in the U.S. state of Washington. It is located in the Columbia River near Ridgefield, just south of the mouth of the Lewis River and a few miles north of the mouth of the Willamette River. The island stretches from Columbia river mile 88 to 91.5...

 units are managed to maximize habitat for waterfowl and other wetland wildlife.

The refuge was established (along with 3 other refuges in the Willamette Valley of Oregon

Willamette Valley

The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...

) in 1965, in response to a need to establish vital winter habitat

Habitat

* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...

 for wintering waterfowl with an emphasis on the dusky Canada goose

Canada Goose

The Canada Goose is a wild goose belonging to the genus Branta, which is native to arctic and temperate regions of North America, having a black head and neck, white patches on the face, and a brownish-gray body....

 whose nesting areas in Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

 were severely impacted by the violent earthquake of 1964.

Stately sandhill crane

Sandhill Crane

The Sandhill Crane is a large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird references habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills in the American Midwest...

s, shorebirds, and a great variety of songbirds stop at the refuge during spring and fall migrations

Bird migration

Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...

. Some bird species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 such as mallard

Mallard

The Mallard , or Wild Duck , is a dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia....

s, great blue heron

Great Blue Heron

The Great Blue Heron is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America as well as the West Indies and the Galápagos Islands. It is a rare vagrant to Europe, with records from Spain, the Azores and England...

s, and red-tailed hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...

s are year-round residents that nest on the refuge. Black-tailed deer

Black-tailed Deer

Two forms of black-tailed deer or blacktail deer occupying coastal temperate rainforest on North America's Pacific coast are subspecies of the mule deer. They have sometimes been treated as a species, but virtually all recent authorities maintain they are subspecies...

 are the largest mammal

Mammal

Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...

 on the refuge. Coyote

Coyote

The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...

, raccoon

Raccoon

Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...

, skunk

Skunk

Skunks are mammals best known for their ability to secrete a liquid with a strong, foul odor. General appearance varies from species to species, from black-and-white to brown or cream colored. Skunks belong to the family Mephitidae and to the order Carnivora...

, beaver

Beaver

The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...

, river otter and brush rabbit

Brush Rabbit

The Brush Rabbit , or Western Brush Rabbit, is a species of cottontail rabbit found in western coastal regions of North America, from the Columbia River in Oregon to the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula...

s are occasionally seen.

External links

• Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge
• Birds of the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge