Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge

Wildlife

Wildlife abounds at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge! Two hundred forty-two species of birds, 43 species of mammals, 15 species of reptiles, and 16 species of amphibians can be found on the Refuge for at least part of the year. The wide array of wildlife can be credited to the varied habitat types found here, from marsh to forest, shrub- and grassland.

Montezuma has long been an important place for wildlife--particularly migratory birds. A significant spot along the Atlantic Flyway, the Refuge provides crucial habitat for migratory waterfowl and other birds to stage, feed and rest during their spring and fall journeys. Some stay to nest in the spring, while others push northward.

Waterfowl

Tens of thousands of ducks and gees inhabit the Refuge during the spring and fall migrations. Canada and snow geese can fill the sky, while black duck and mallards can be found throughout the Refuge pools. Wood duck, gadwall, green-winged teal, American wigeon, northern shoveler, northern pintail, and blue-winged teal make up the bulk of other dabbling ducks that depend of Refuge waters and lands during migration. You may also see certain diving ducks on Refuge pools or in the canal--canvasback, redhead, ring-necked duck, and mergansers may be found in lesser numbers than their dabbling friends.

A visit to the Refuge in winter may reveal large flocks of Canada geese--as long as there is open water on the marsh. Overwintering of Canada geese in the Cayuga Lake Basin has increased dramatically since the 1970s, with current numbers of geese in winter as high as 100,000!

You may also discover flocks of snow geese in the area. Finding them in flight on a sunny day is a sight to behold as their white bodies glimmer in the sun as they fly!

Marsh & Water Birds

A tour around the Refuge's shallow pools may reveal several species of wading and other water birds, some of which nest here. The shallow waters, fringed by cattail and other emergent vegetation, attract an abundance of great blue heron, green-backed heron, great egret, black-crowned night-heron, Virginia rail, sora, bitterns, common moorhen and pied-billed grebes.

Shorebirds

Montezuma is extremely important to migrating shorebirds as a stopover point along their interior route of southward migration in the late summer/early fall. The mix of species found here certainly differs from that along the Atlantic Coast.

Mudflat and shallow water habitats throughout the Refuge during late summer/early fall provide prime habitat for migratory shorebirds. Here, they can find a feast of invertebrates as they stop and rest on their journeys south. Over twenty species of shorebirds may be sighted and heard, including: killdeer, spotted sandpiper, American woodcock (typically at night), common snipe, greater and lesser yellowlegs, dunlin, short- and long-billed dowitcher, black-bellied plover; and more rarely, several sandpiper species, Hudsonian godwit, American golden plover, and both red and Wilson's phalarope.

Attracted by the abundance of shorebirds, peregrine falcon and merlin may be spotted on the hunt!

Black terns (a NYS listed endangered species) have recently returned to nesting in the Montezuma wetlands. Black terns nest in small, loose colonies using floating masses of dead vegetation. Since the 1950s, when the population reached more than 2,000 terns, numbers and nesting had been on the decline--until recently. The drop in numbers is believed to be related to the invasion of purple loosestrife. Purple loosestrife "chokes out" other vegetation and open water areas, leaving the area undesirable to nesting terns. With our successful purple loosestrife control, Montezuma's habitats have once again attracted nesting black terns. A success story for conservations, for sure!

Bald Eagles

Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge played an integral role in reintroducing the once-endangered bald eagle to New York State. Here is an account of this innovative restoration program, and a little history on Montezuma's bald eagles.

Today, the Refuge boasts three active bald eagle nests. The infamous trio's nest can be viewed from Armitage Road, located off of NY State Route 89. The trio has nested on the Refuge since 1987; the two males are from the reintroduction program! In 1994, a pair of bald eagles nested on Tschache Pool and have remained on the refuge, producing young eagles since then! After a long wait, a new pair of eagles made the Refuge home. In 2006, a new pair of breeding bald eagles made the Refuge their home. In what can only be described as a "National Geographic moment," eagle battled with osprey over an existing osprey nest located along the Canal on Lock #1, locally known as Mud Lock. A battle on the wing ensued, talons locked, birds screamed, but in the end, the eagle won and when nesting season came for the bald eagles, they settled into the osprey nest on the lock.

There are two other known eagle nests in the area, and within the Montezuma Wetlands Complex. These two nests are located in the Savannah area on NYS DEC lands. One is located not too far from the Montezuma Audubon Center.

While there are only a handful of nests, bald eagle numbers on the Refuge may surprise you. During one bird survey along the Main Pool, volunteer LaRue St. Clair spotted 59 eagles in one morning (many of these were immature)! The bald eagle story is surely one of success and in June 2007, the bald eagle was taken off of the endangered species list.

Mammals

Information on Refuge mammals can be found here.

Carp

Native to Asia, carp were introduces to the United States during the 1880s by the U.S. Fish Commission as a food fish. Carp proved to be detrimental to native fish populations and never became as popular for game or food in North America as they are in Europe and Asia.

Carp have been known to reach a length of 4.5 feet and a weight of 80 pounds! And while it's not uncommon to see carp in the 40 pound range, the typical carp here measures between 1 - 2 feet and weighs between 2 - 10 pounds.

Along the Wildlife Drive, at the Seneca Spillway, you may see carp "pile up" on the Canal side. Carp in the Canal want to get into the warm, nutrient-rich waters of the Main Pool--water they can sense spilling over into the Canal. The Refuge hopes to keep the carp out of the pools because carp can stir up silt, reducing the amount of sunlight penetrating the water, preventing plant growth. Underwater plants are essential to the marsh community. When water levels subside and water stops flowing from the Mail Pool into the Canal, the carp will disperse back into the Canal.