Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge

Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Holgate Beach, part of the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is situated at the southern tip of Long Beach Island, within Long Beach Township, Ocean County, New Jersey, U.S., on the Jersey Shore.
Map of the United States
Location	Atlantic and Ocean counties, New Jersey, United States
Nearest city	Oceanville, New Jersey, U.S.
Coordinates	39°36′N 74°19′W / 39.600°N 74.317°W / 39.600; -74.317
Area	47,437.17 acres (191.9714 km2)[1]
Established	1984
Governing body	U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Website	Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge
Ramsar Wetland
Designated	18 December 1986
Reference no.	348[2]

The Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge is a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge located in southern and south-central New Jersey, along the Atlantic coast, north of Atlantic City, in Atlantic and Ocean counties. The refuge was created in 1984 out of two existing refuge parcels created to protect tidal wetland and shallow bay habitat for migratory water birds. The Barnegat Division (established in 1967) is located in Ocean County on the inland side of Barnegat Bay. The Brigantine Division (established in 1939) is located approximately 10 miles (16 km) north of Atlantic City along the south bank of the mouth of the Mullica River. The two divisions are separated by approximately 20 miles (32 km). The refuge is located along most active flight paths of the Atlantic Flyway, making it an important link in the network of national wildlife refuges administered nationwide by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Forsythe Refuge is a part of the Hudson River/New York Bight Ecosystem and The New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route. The refuge is named for Edwin B. Forsythe, conservationist Congressman from New Jersey. The refuge was named as a Ramsar Site of international importance in 1986.