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Canaan
Valley National Wildlife Refuge
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 Refuge Overview: Located in the rugged mountains of West Virginia, the 14-mile long, 3-mile wide Canaan Valley lies at an elevation of 3,200 feet, making it the highest valley of its size east of the Rocky Mountains. Established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1994, funding for Canaan Valley has come primarily from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. In June 2004, though, Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge became the beneficiary of Federal Duck Stamp Dollars when the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission approved the acquisition of 119 acres for the refuge.
John and Karen Hollingsworth/USFWS Photo |
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Habitat: Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge
protects the headwaters of the Blackwater River and the largest
freshwater wetland area in the central and southern Appalachian
Mountains. Considered by the State of Virginia to be its most
important wetland complex and noted by the Atlantic
Coast Joint Venture as an area of primary importance in the Allegheny Highlands,
the refuge provides important breeding grounds for mallards and
wood ducks along the Atlantic Flyway. Other migratory birds and
waterfowl also take advantage of the refuge’s limestone
springs, alder thickets, muskeg, wet meadows, shrub thickets,
marshes, beaver ponds, bogs, and swamp forest. |
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Recreation Opportunities: Canaan
Valley National Wildlife Refuge is an excellent destination for
school field trips and university research. Library resources and
field equipment are available for visiting educators, workshops
can be scheduled for groups of educators, and films and exhibitions
are regularly available at the visitor center. The refuge also
provides a number of recreation opportunities including hunting,
fishing, and wildlife observation and photography.
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Additional Resources
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