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San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex

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San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex San Luis / Merced / San Joaquin River / Grasslands Welcome The San Luis National Wildlife “Wild beasts and Refuge Complex (Complex)— composed of the San Luis, Merced, and San Joaquin River National birds are by right not Wildlife Refuges (NWR) and the the property merely Grasslands Wildlife Management Area of the people who are (WMA)—consists of nearly 45,000 acres of wetlands, alive today, but the grasslands, and riparian habitats, property of unknown as well as over 90,000 acres of generations, whose conservation easements for the protection and belongings we have no benefit of wildlife. The refuge units right to squander.” are located in the northern San —Theodore Roosevelt, American President, Joaquin Valley outdoorsman, naturalist, and leader of the of California in early conservation movement Merced, Stanislaus, and San Joaquin The San Luis Counties. NWR Complex is located between The Complex is located within the Interstate 5 and Pacific Flyway, a major route for CA Hwy 99, the migrating birds. The extensive two primary wetlands of the Complex and north-south surrounding lands provide habitat travel routes for up to a million waterfowl each in California. winter. Of the 30 species of waterfowl The Complex is using the Complex, the most common within an hour include Ross’ geese, Aleutian cackling and a half drive geese, snow geese, green-winged teal, of several major mallard, northern pintail, northern metropolitan shoveler, gadwall, American wigeon, areas in central and white-fronted geese. Large California. numbers of shorebirds and other waterbirds, songbirds, and raptors use the Complex. Sandhill Cranes Cinnamon Teal © Rick Lewis © Jerry Baldwin Looking Back The San Luis NWR Complex natural hydrology of the Valley. Today, provides a glimpse back to a time a network of canals and ditches— when rivers and sloughs ran wild water highways—transport water across the San Joaquin Valley. from holding reservoirs to farms. The loss In the past, the banks of the San of wetland In response to the loss of critical Joaquin River and its tributaries wildlife habitat, the first National overflowed with winter rainwater habitat on the Wildlife Refuge in the northern San and spring snowmelt from the Sierra San Joaquin Joaquin Valley—Merced NWR—was Nevada mountains. As summer established for waterfowl in the progressed the sun-baked basins Valley floor 1950s. Additional land was acquired dried. Fall and winter rains recharged means that to enlarge Merced NWR and to the river and seasonal wetlands, the remaining establish other national wildlife starting the cycle all over again. refuges (San Luis NWR and San habitat must Joaquin River NWR) and the Vast expanses of freshwater marshes be intensively Grasslands WMA. made the San Joaquin Valley a haven for wildlife. For thousands of managed for Today, the loss of wetland habitat years the Valley has been a major the wildlife on the San Joaquin Valley floor wintering ground for waterfowl and means that the remaining habitat shorebirds migrating along the Pacific that depend must be intensively managed for the Flyway—an ancient super-highway on it. wildlife that depend on it. The lands for birds stretching from northern of the San Luis NWR Complex are Alaska south into Central and South managed with the primary purpose America. Historical accounts depict of benefiting wildlife. Flooding and flocks of ducks and geese large draining of wetlands are carefully enough to darken the sky. timed to the needs of migratory birds and the growth of vegetation In addition, hundreds of thousands beneficial to wildlife. Crops such as of tule elk roamed the grasslands, Old Windmill corn and winter wheat are cultivated along with mule deer and pronghorn on the Kesterson for use by geese and cranes. This antelope. The now-extinct California Unit / San Luis intensive management gives nature a grizzly bear was a conspicuous NWR helping hand. resident of the Valley floor, and the © Lee Eastman rivers teemed with salmon. The Spanish colonization of California in the late 1700s and subsequent American colonization in the 1800s changed the face of the San Joaquin Valley. In the late 1800s livestock ranchers began draining the lush wetlands and altering natural waterways to create a landscape more favorable to grazing. Farming also proved prosperous on the rich alluvial soils. In the 1940s, a succession of large water projects, designed to Northern secure and store a water supply Pintails © Lee Eastman for agriculture, further altered the San Luis NWR Tule Elk © Lee Eastman San Luis National The San Luis National Wildlife a sanctuary Wildlife Refuge Refuge encompasses over 26,800 for migratory acres of wetlands, riparian forests, waterfowl. Over native grasslands, and vernal pools. the years the A thriving population of the endemic Refuge has tule elk is showcased by one of three steadily grown auto tour routes. The Refuge is host in size and today to significant assemblages of birds, it comprises six mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, Mallard Drake contiguous units: and Hen insects, and plants. Some of these— © Richard Albers San Luis, East Bear Creek, West the California tiger salamander, long- Bear Creek, Freitas, Blue Goose, and Blue-winged Teal horned fairy shrimp, and San Joaquin Kesterson. The San Joaquin River Drake and Hen kit fox—are endangered species. bisects the eastern portion of the © Rick Lewis Refuge. In 1966, the first parcel of The Refuge is a major wintering the Refuge ground and migratory stopover for was purchased large concentrations of waterfowl, with Federal shorebirds, and other waterbirds. Duck Stamp Large flocks of green-winged teal, funds to provide northern shoveler, mallard, gadwall, Elk from this herd are periodically relocated to join other tule elk herds, or establish new ones, throughout California. A true wildlife recovery success story, the statewide tule elk population has recovered to more than 4,000 animals. Less well-known are the extensive upland habitats found on the Refuge. Many of these are characterized Long-billed by saline and alkaline conditions as Dowitchers wigeon, cinnamon teal, northern well as low rainfall and arid climate © Lee Eastman pintail, ring-necked duck, canvasback, that characterize the San Joaquin ruddy duck, and snow, Ross’, and Valley. These habitats support a white-fronted geese swarm over the rich botanical community of native mosaic of seasonal and permanent bunchgrasses, native and exotic wetlands that cover a quarter of the Great Egret annual grasses, forbs, and native © Mike Peters Refuge. Waterfowl generally remain shrubs. Trees, such as the valley oak, until late March before beginning cottonwood, and willow grow along their journey north to breeding areas. riparian corridors. In these areas However, some mallard, gadwall, and visitors might encounter coyotes, cinnamon teal stay, breed, and raise desert cottontail rabbits, ground young on the Refuge. squirrels, western meadowlarks, yellow-billed magpies, and loggerhead Shorebirds, including sandpipers shrikes, as well as northern harriers, and plovers, can be found in the tens white-tailed kites, and other raptors of thousands from autumn through coursing over the vegetation. Stately spring. Large flocks of dunlin, long- great blue herons, great egrets, billed dowitchers, least sandpipers, and white-faced ibis are frequently and western sandpipers feed in sighted throughout the Refuge. shallow seasonal wetlands, whereas flocks of long-billed curlews use both The Refuge contains the Complex’s wetlands and grasslands. More than Visitor Center and Headquarters, 25 species of shorebirds have been which features an exhibit hall documented at the San Luis NWR. and a classroom. The Visitor Center is The San Luis NWR played a key role open daily. in the recovery of the tule elk, a non- migratory elk subspecies found only The Refuge has in California. Prior to the mid-1800s three auto tour an estimated 500,000 tule elk lived routes with in California. Due to over-hunting nature trails and loss of natural habitat, they were and observation driven nearly to extinction by the platforms. The turn of the twentieth century—by Refuge also some accounts, the population allows fishing at was reduced to as few as 20–30 designated sites individuals. In 1974 a herd of 18 and has a large animals was established at the San Coyote waterfowl hunting Luis NWR and has since thrived. © Rick Lewis program. Merced NWR Ross’ and Snow Geese © Rick Lewis Merced National The Merced National Wildlife Refuge six months. Here they mingle with Wildlife Refuge encompasses 10,258 acres of wetlands, thousands of other visiting waterfowl, native grasslands, vernal pools, waterbirds, and shorebirds—a true and riparian areas. It was winter phenomenon. established in 1951 under the Lea Act to attract wintering The Refuge also provides important waterfowl from adjacent breeding habitat for Swainson’s farmland where their foraging hawks, tri-colored blackbirds, marsh activities were causing crop wrens, mallards, gadwall, cinnamon damage. In the last few teal, and burrowing owls. Tri- decades changes in local colored blackbirds, a colonial-nesting Burrowing Owl agricultural practices and © Richard Albers songbird, breed in colonies of more refuge management activities than 25,000 pairs in robust herbaceous have reduced crop damage vegetation. Coyotes, ground squirrels, caused by wildlife. desert cottontail rabbits, beaver, and long-tailed weasels can also be seen The Refuge plays host to the year-round. largest wintering populations of lesser Sandhill cranes Vernal pools are unique wetlands and Ross’ geese along the found on the Merced NWR. These Pacific Flyway. Each autumn special pools form from natural Lesser Sandhill more than 20,000 cranes and 60,000 shallow depressions underlaid with Crane arctic-nesting geese terminate their clay soils. The pools come to life as © Rick Lewis annual migrations from Alaska and they fill with winter rainwater. Fairy Canada to make the Refuge home for and tadpole shrimp emerge from will have adequate nutrient stores to make their long migration.
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