Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Last updated January 02, 2025

Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota. It is managed under Kulm Wetland Management District.

Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge was established by Executive Order 8117, signed on May 10, 1939 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Refuge boundaries encompass 2,784 acres (11.27 km²) of private land. A system of flooding easements and management easements allows the Service flood land within the river channel or to restrict hunting, trapping and other harassment of wildlife.

The District manages a low level dam on the James River called Dakota Lake Dam, also known as Ludden Dam or State Line Dam. Dakota Lake Dam was initially constructed by local people and the depression era Works Project Administration to raise the level of the James River, which frequently turned stagnant and toxic to cattle during summer months. The dam raises the level of the James River about one foot which holds water in old river channels, providing breeding, nesting and brood rearing habitat for many marsh dependent birds and other wildlife.

Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located in southern Dickey County, North Dakota. From Ludden, North Dakota proceed west on North Dakota Highway 11; the Refuge boundary is at the west end of town. North Dakota Highway 11 crosses the James River and the Refuge.

The James River is at the heart of major corridor for migrating birds. The Refuge is a migration stopover for many thousands of waterfowl and shore birds. Snow geese are one of the most obvious users of the Refuge during their spring and fall migrations. Sand Lake National Wildlife Refuge in South Dakota is a scant 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge.

Dakota Lake is closed to all public use; however, hunting, wildlife observation and photography can be quite good on public roads or private lands around the Refuge. April and October are good times to observe waterfowl migrations. An abundance of shorebirds migrate during late August and September.

Related Research Articles

The Bald Knob National Wildlife Refuge is a 15,022 acres (60.79 km²) (2014) wildlife refuge located in White County, Arkansas about two miles south of the town of Bald Knob. The refuge is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge features large numbers of migratory waterfowl and bald eagles during the winter months.

Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge is an 11,047-acre (45 km²) National Wildlife Refuge located in Mississippi County, Arkansas, managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. It is situated 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Manila, Arkansas, and consists mostly of a shallow lake, swamp, and bottomland hardwood forests. The preservation of habitat for waterfowl in an intensely agricultural region is the primary purpose of the refuge. 6,400 acres (20 km²) of Big Lake was named a National Natural Landmark. 2,144 acres (8 km²) are designated as wilderness.

Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife preserve operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, encompassing part of the Montezuma Swamp at the north end of Cayuga Lake. The 10,004-acre (40.48 km²) preserve is composed of swamps, pools and channels and is a stopping point for migratory birds. It is the largest contiguous wetland complex in the northeastern United States and comprises a portion of the larger Montezuma Wetlands Complex, which is a partnership between the USFWS, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, as well as several other non-profit support organizations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge</span> Protected area in Michigan, United States

The Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge is a 9,870.35 acres (39.9439 km²) National Wildlife Refuge in Saginaw County managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. It is located in the central portion of the lower peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan, approximately 25 miles (40 km) south of the Saginaw Bay in Lake Huron and five miles (8 km) south of the city of Saginaw in the county's Spaulding and James townships. It was established in 1953 to provide habitat for migratory waterfowl.

Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge is a 13,450-acre (5,440 ha) U.S. National Wildlife Refuge located in northwestern Colorado. It is located in Moffat County in the extreme northwestern corner of the state, in an isolated mountain valley of Browns Park on both sides of the Green River, approximately 25 miles (40 km) below Flaming Gorge Dam. Established in 1965, the refuge is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service office in Maybell, Colorado. The refuge is approximately 53 miles (85 km) northwest of Maybell on State Highway 318. The refuge consists of bottomland and adjacent benchland. The western border of the refuge is the Colorado-Utah state line. The refuge is surrounded by adjacent lines of the Bureau of Land Management. The refuge contains the site of the former Fort Davy Crockett that was constructed in 1837 to protect trappers against attacks by Blackfoot Native Americans.

Sand Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of South Dakota and is administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Created in 1935, it is a wetland of international importance and a Globally Important Bird Area. Over 260 bird species are found in the refuge, including many migratory bird species and the world's largest breeding colony of Franklin's gulls.

Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge is located in the U.S. state of North Dakota. Arrowwood NWR is a part of the Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge Complex, and is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge parallels 16 miles (27 km) of the James River and is a mixture of wetlands, forest and prairie. Efforts to ensure the refuge continues to provide prime nesting habitat for waterfowl include prescribed fire, haying, crop cultivation and livestock grazing. The refuge has forests with oak and hackberry which are uncommon on the prairie. It is believed that the name for the refuge is derived from Native American naming for arrow wood, as the wood in the forest was prized for the making of arrows.

Hobart Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a 2,077-acre (8.41 km²) Easement Refuge located in Barnes County, North Dakota five miles (8 km) west of Valley City.

Chase Lake Wetland Management District is located in the U.S. state of North Dakota around Chase Lake. The district is located in what is known as the Prairie Pothole Region of lakes and ponds, which were left behind by the retreat of glaciers at the end of the last ice age. It was established in 1993.

The Half-Way Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located in the U.S. state of North Dakota and consists of 160 acres (0.65 km²). The refuge is a "limited-interest" refuge, which is privately owned easement refuge, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge is closed to the public and was established to protect habitat for migratory bird species and other animal life. Chase Lake Wetland Management District oversees the refuge, which in turn is a part of the Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge Complex.

Cheyenne Bottoms is a wetland in the central Great Plains of North America. Occupying approximately 41,000 acres in central Kansas, it is the largest wetland in the interior United States. The Bottoms is a critical stopping point on the Central Flyway for millions of birds which migrate through the region annually.

Straddling the headwaters of the Minnesota River in west-central Minnesota, Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge is within the heart of the tallgrass prairie's historic range. Today, less than one-percent of tallgrass prairie remains.

Appert Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in Emmons County, North Dakota. It is a privately owned property with refuge easement rights for flooding, and is one of five easement refuges managed under Long Lake National Wildlife Refuge. It is closed to hunting. It was established to provide a stable water area and safe haven for migrating waterfowl in response to declining populations during the Dust Bowl era of the 1930s. The refuge centers on a wooded prairie wetland which provides relatively unique habitat in an agriculturally dominated area. The refuge is used by wood ducks, American wigeon, green-winged teal, mallards, pintails, gadwalls and a host of woodland passerine bird species.

Bone Hill National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota. It is managed under Kulm Wetland Management District.

Maple River National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota. It is managed under Kulm Wetland Management District.

Lambs Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in Nelson County, North Dakota. It is managed under Devils Lake Wetland Management District. This is a limited-interest national wildlife refuge. The FWS has an easement on private property allowing it to manage wildlife habitat, but the land remains private property. There is no public access although wildlife may be observed from adjacent public roads. Limited-interest refuges were created in the 1930s and 1940s in response to declining waterfowl populations and the need to get people back to work during the Great Depression. Many landowners sold easements allowing the federal government to regulate water levels and restrict hunting.

Rose Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in Nelson County, North Dakota. It is managed under Devils Lake Wetland Management District.

Wood Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in Benson County, North Dakota. It is managed under Devils Lake Wetland Management District.

Located in south-central North Dakota, Kulm Wetland Management District was established in July 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. The District currently manages 201 waterfowl production areas that total 45,683 acres (184.87 km²), 3 national wildlife refuges that are easement refuges, and 120,000 acres (490 km²) of wetland and grassland easements. The District's headquarters is in Kulm, North Dakota.

The Summer Lake Wildlife Area is a 29.6-square-mile (77 km²) wildlife refuge located on the northwestern edge of the Great Basin drainage in south-central Oregon. It is administered by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The refuge is an important stop for waterfowl traveling along the Pacific Flyway during their spring and fall migrations. The Summer Lake Wildlife Area also provides habitat for shorebirds and other bird species as well as wide variety of mammals and several fish species. The Ana River supplies the water for the refuge wetlands.

References

Kulm Westland Management District: Limited-interest National Wildlife Refuges - includes Dakota Lake National Wildlife Refuge

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service .

45°59′41″N98°09′46″W / 45.99472°N 98.16278°W / 45.99472; -98.16278

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.