Cache River National Wildlife Refuge

This article is about the National Wildlife Refuge in Arkansas. For the National Wildlife Refuge on the Cache River in Illinois, see Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge.
Cache River National Wildlife Refuge
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Map showing the location of Cache River National Wildlife Refuge
Map showing the location of Cache River National Wildlife Refuge
Map of the United States
LocationArkansas, United States
Coordinates35°03′30″N 91°19′45″W / 35.05833°N 91.32917°W / 35.05833; -91.32917
Area68,993 acres (279.20 km2)[1]
Established1986
Governing bodyU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
WebsiteCache River NWR
Official nameCache-Lower White Rivers
Designated21 November 1989
Reference no.442[2]

The Cache River National Wildlife Refuge is a 68,993 acre (223 km2) (2014) wildlife refuge in the state of Arkansas managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).[3] The refuge is one of the Ramsar wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention signed in 1971. It is one of the most important wintering area for ducks and the largest remaining tract of contiguous bottomland hardwood forest on the North American continent. In 2005, a possible sighting of the ivory-billed woodpecker, thought to be extinct, brought attention to the refuge.

In 2012, the FWS proposed the gradual expansion of the refuge up to a maximum of 287,574 acres (116,377 ha).[4]

  1. ^ "Statistical Data Tables 9/30/2014" http://www.fws.gov/refuges/land/PDF/2014_Annual_Report_of_LandDateTables.pdf, accessed 1/14/2015
  2. ^ "Cache-Lower White Rivers". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Cache River expansion Proposal" http://www.fws.gov/southeast/cacheriverexpansion/overview.html, accessed July 8, 2013
  4. ^ "Cache River expansion Proposal. http://www.fws.gov/southeast/cacheriverexpansion/overview.html, accessed July 8, 2013