Kofa NWR

Refuge Quick Facts
Susanna Henry (Refuge Manager); Mitch Ellis (Complex Manager)
9300 E. 28th Street, Yuma, AZ 85365
Phone: 928/783-7861 Fax: 928/783-8611
Contact Us

Download Kofa NWR Vicinity Map (PDF)

Getting There:

To the office:

From Tucson: From I-8, take the Fortuna Drive exit. Turn right onto Fortuna and move into the left turn lane at the next stop light. Turn left onto North Frontage Road. Follow North Frontage to Avenue 9E. Turn right onto 9E. Follow 9E past the RV Resort and turn right onto 28^th Street. We are the second building on the left (the first is Arizona Game and Fish Department at the intersection of 28^th and 9E.)

From California: From I-8, take the Fortuna Drive exit. Turn left onto Fortuna. Follow Fortuna over the overpass and turn left at the 2^nd stoplight. This is North Frontage Road. Follow North Frontage to Avenue 9E. Turn right onto 9E. Follow 9E past the RV Resort and turn right onto 28^th Street. We are the second building on the left (the first is Arizona Game and Fish Department at the intersection of 28^th and 9E.)

To the Refuge: From Yuma, take Highway 95 north towards Quartzite, Arizona, to refuge entrance signs.

When was it established? 1939
How big is it? 665,400 acres
Map of the Refuge

[Welcome] [Habitat] [Wildlife] [Species Lists] [Things to do at the Refuge]
[Tips for Watching Wildlife] [Hunting] [Camping] [Help Us Protect the Refuge]
[Volunteer Opportunities] [Arizona Links]

See Arizona Links for more information about natural areas and tourism in Arizona.

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Last Updated April 28, 2008

Disclaimer

Volunteer Opportunities

Volunteers are needed to help with the following:

Maintenance--mowing lawns, posting boundaries and signs, checking traffic counter/brochure boxes, cleaning shop areas, welding/carpentry work, painting

Public Outreach--develop and present educational programs, participate in fairs/shows, create slide/photo library.

Office Assistance--librarian skills, filing, computer database entry, organizational skills to help in office.

Biological Work--bird surveys (if qualified), may assist with vegetation, deer, sheep, bat, or tortoise work, depending on the time of year. Please contact the refuge at 928/783-7861 or fw2_rw_kofa@fws.gov for more information.

Help Us Protect the Refuge

Passage of the 1990 Arizona Desert Wilderness Act included 516,300 acres of the Kofa NWR. Visitors to the refuge may encounter wilderness boundary signs. No vehicular travel, including bicycles, is permitted into wilderness areas. Only foot or horseback travel is permitted.
All federal, state, and county laws, regulations, and ordinances are enforced on the refuge.
Mechanized vehicular traffic is limited to designated roads. Off-road vehicle travel is prohibited. All vehicles, including ATCs, quadratrac, and motorcycles, and all drivers must be licensed and insured for highway driving. Speed is limited to 25 mph.
Collecting, possessing, molesting, disturbing, injuring, destroying, removing, or transporting any plant or animal or part thereof (alive or dead) is prohibited. (Except for legally taken game.)
Carrying, posssessing, or discharging firearms or explosives (including fireworks) on the refuge is prohibited. Persons may use legal firearms for approved hunting, provided that firearms are unloaded and cased or dismantled when transported in vehicles.
The possession or use of crossbows, bows and arrows, air guns, or other weapons, is prohibited except when used for approved hunting.
The dumping of litter, sewage, or liquid wastes on the refuge is prohibited.
The refuge is closed to mineral entry. Prospecting, removal, or disturbance of sand, rock, gravel, or minerals is prohibited. (Exceptions are valid mining claims existing prior to 1974.)
Disturbance of the peace or other disorderly conduct on the refuge is prohibited. No person who is intoxicated shall enter or remain upon the refuge.
Pets are permitted only if they are confined. (Except the use of dogs when participating in a legal hunt.)
Persons are prohibited from searching for or removing objects of antiquity, Indian artifacts, or paleontolgical objects.
Recreational (noncommerical) rockhounding is permitted only in the designated area known as Crystal Hill.
On the remainder of the Kofa NWR, rock or mineral collecting is prohibited.
Campfires are permitted, but only dead wood may be used. Wood is scarce, please use it sparingly. No wood may be removed from the refuge.
The use of automatic or remotely-controlled cameras is prohibited.

Hunting

Regulated hunting is permitted for quail, bighorn sheep, deer, cottontail, rabbit, coyote, and fox. All other wildlife is protected.
Hunting is in accordance with applicable state and refuge regulations. Licenses and permits are required.
The refuge is closed to the taking of predatory animals during deer season, except that deer hunters with valid Unit 45A, 45B, and 45C deer permits may take predatory animals until they have taken a deer.
Private lands occur within the refuge and may be posted.
Shooting from a vehicle is prohibited.
All firearms, including handguns, rifles, and shotguns, within a vehicle must be unloaded and either cased or broken down.
Trapping is not permitted on the refuge.
Hunting seasons for the refuge are listed in current Arizona Game and Fish Department hunting regulations.

Wildlife

Notable wildlife species found in the area include the white-winged dove, desert tortoise, and desert kit fox. The Refuge has one of the largest desert bighorn sheep populations in the southwestern United States. In recent years, this herd has provided animals for transplanting throughout Arizona and neighboring states.

Birds that are likely to be seen at Kofa include American kestrel, white-winged dove, northern flicker, Say's phoebe, cactus wren, phainopepla, and orange-crowned warbler.

The Kofa Mountain barberry (a rare plant found only in southwest Arizona) occurs on the refuge.

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Things to do at the Refuge

Hiking, sightseeing, photography, and nature observation are permitted in all areas of the refuge except on patented mining claims and other private inholdings. A half-mile foot trail is available to see Palm Canyon.

Past mining activity has left numerous vertical shafts, drift tunnels, and open pits throughout the refuge. These are extremely dangerous due to possible caving or collapsing. No attempt should be made to enter or explore them at close range.

See Tips for Watching Wildlife for suggestions
to make your visit more enjoyable.

Habitat

Kofa National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1939 and is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge encompasses 665,400 acres of pristine desert that is home to the desert bighorn sheep and the California palm, the only native palm in Arizona.

In the early part of this century, a number of mines were established in the mountainous areas of the refuge. One of the most notable was the King of Arizona mine. It gave the Kofa Mountains their name-- "Kofa" being contracted from King of Arizona.

Two mountain ranges dominate the landscape--the Kofa Mountains and the Castle Dome Mountains. Although these ranges are not especially high, they are extremely rugged and rise sharply from the surrounding desert plains, providing ideal bighorn sheep country.

Palm Canyon, in the west end of the Kofa Mountains, is well known for its native palms. These palm trees are probably remnants from when this area was wetter and cooler than it is now. Though numbering less than 100, this handful of trees is among the only native palms in Arizona.

Planning Update

Draft Environmental Assessment for Limiting Mountain Lion Predation
on Desert Bighorn Sheep on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge

Public Meeting - September 16, 2009 6:30 pm, Pivot Point Conference Center,
200 North Madison Avenue, Yuma, AZ

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be hosting a public meeting in Yuma, Arizona. The subject of the meeting is the recently released Draft Environmental Assessment for Limiting Mountain Lion Predation on Desert Bighorn Sheep on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. A 60-day comment period running August 4th to October 2nd has been established. The public meeting will provide a forum for sharing information and facilitating public input regarding this important issue. The agency will provide a presentation, followed by an open house. Agency staff will be available to answer questions following the presentation and will staff multiple information stations during the open house portion of the meeting.

The meeting will be held September 16, 2009 in Yuma, Arizona at the Pivot Point Conference Center located in downtown Yuma at 200 North Madison Avenue, Yuma, AZ. The meeting will begin at 6:30 pm. Directions to the Conference Center can be found at the following website: www.pivotpointconferencecenter.com

For additional information or to download a copy of the Draft EA please visit our website at: www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/arizona/kofa/index.html.
Thank you for your interest in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge.

September 16, 2009 Public Meeting Presentation on Kofa Sheep and Lion Conservation (1.13M, pdf)