Tewaukon National Wildlife Refuge is located in southeastern 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....

 along the western edge of the northern tallgrass prairie

Tallgrass prairie

The tallgrass prairie is an ecosystem native to central North America, with fire as its primary periodic disturbance. In the past, tallgrass prairies covered a large portion of the American Midwest, just east of the Great Plains, and portions of the Canadian Prairies. They flourished in areas with...

, about 5 miles (8 km) south of Cayuga

Cayuga, North Dakota

As of the census of 2000, there were 61 people, 26 households, and 13 families residing in the city. The population density was 61.8 people per square mile . There were 32 housing units at an average density of 32.4 per square mile...

, in Sargent County

Sargent County, North Dakota

-National protected areas:*Storm Lake National Wildlife Refuge*Tewaukon National Wildlife Refuge*Wild Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge-Demographics:...

. The Wild Rice River

Wild Rice River (North Dakota)

The Wild Rice River is a tributary of the Red River of the North, approximately long, in southeastern North Dakota in the United States. Via the Red River, Lake Winnipeg, and the Nelson River, it is part of the watershed of Hudson Bay. The Wild Rice River drains an area of in the Red River...

 flows through the Refuge and then into Lake Tewaukon. Established in 1945, the 8363 acres (33.8 km²) Refuge is located in the Prairie Pothole Region, one of the most biologically productive areas on earth.