Updated October 21, 2024
ALERTS:
- PRESCRIBED FIRE BURNING AT SACRAMENTO NWR: Tuesday 10/22 through Thursday 10/24, fire crews will be conducting several prescribed burns at the Sacramento NWR, having met appropriate thresholds for air quality and humidity. Conducting these burns will be beneficial for birds by creating new food sources and improved nesting site habitats. Be advised that smoke will be in the area.
- SHORTCUTS TO NEW SNWRC HUNTING WEB PAGES:
- Hunting - Waterfowl: Sacramento, Delevan, Colusa & Sutter NWRs
- Hunting: Junior, Mobility & Special Hunts
- Hunting - River: Sacramento River NWR
Please review the information on these pages before calling the refuge with questions
VISITOR CENTER IS OPEN
We are pleased to announce that our new Visitor Center is open Thursdays and Fridays from 9:00am-4:00pm (subject to change, closed on all Federal Holidays).
LIVE WEB-CAM
- What's the Weather Like?
- Are there Birds at the Refuge?
Check out the LIVE WEB-CAM at Sacramento NWR, brought to you by Friends of the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge. Click on their link to find out how you can get involved! --> www.friendsofsnwr.org
INJURED or ABANDONED ANIMAL?
Questions about a baby bird or injured wildlife? Please visit our CONTACT US page for information on what to do and who to call. Please do not call the refuge - Sacramento NWR does not rescue, rehabilitate or accept animals.
Visit Us
Welcome to Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge!
Sacramento NWR is the Headquarters for the Sacramento NWR Complex, and offers a Visitor Center with Restrooms and a Picnic Area, Auto Tour, Information Kiosks, Observation Decks, Trails, Photography Blinds (by reservation only), limited Bicycling, Environmental Education Programs and Hunting.
There are LOTS of recreational opportunities on the other refuges of the Complex, including Visitor Areas, Auto Tours, trails, bicycling, photography, and hunting.
Click on VISIT US! to find all the information you need to plan your visit, like recreational opportunities, what to expect, hours and directions, accessibility, passes and permits, rules and policies, local and contact information. Or jump straight to your favorite activity using these quick links:
VISITOR CENTERAUTO TOURSTRAILSBICYCLINGPHOTOGRAPHYHUNTING-WATERFOWLHunting-RiverMAPS, DIRECTIONS + BROCHURESENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
Sacramento National Wildlife is one of the 5 National Wildlife Refuges (NWR) and 3 Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) that make up the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex:
Location and Contact Information
About Us
The Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge is located about 70 miles north of the metropolitan area of Sacramento and 7 miles south of the town of Willows in Glenn and Colusa Counties. The refuge consists of 10,819 acres of wetlands, grasslands and riparian riparian
Definition of riparian habitat or riparian areas.
Learn more about riparian habitats.
Click on the link below to learn more about us!
What We Do
- Resource Management
To help plants and wildlife, Refuge staff uses a variety of habitat management techniques to maintain, recover or enhance plant and wildlife values. Refuge staff carefully consider any management techniques and employ them in varying degrees according to the situation.
- Conservation and Partnerships
The Complex is involved in many conservation endeavors, including Comprehensive Conservation Plans, Private Landowner Programs, and the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act.
Click on the link below to learn more about what we do!
Our Organization
National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997:The NWRS Improvement Act defines a unifying mission for all refuges, including a process for determining compatible uses on refuges, and requiring that each refuge be managed according to a CCP. The NWRS Improvement Act expressly states that wildlife conservation is the priority of System lands and that the Secretary shall ensure that the biological integrity, diversity, and environmental health of refuge lands are maintained. Each refuge must be managed to fulfill the specific purposes for which the refuge was established and the System mission. The first priority of each refuge is to conserve, manage, and if needed, restore fish and wildlife populations and habitats according to its purpose.
Our Species
Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge is best known for migratory waterfowl. Waterfowl are present September through April and numbers regularly peak at over 500,000 ducks and 250,000 geese. Sacramento NWR is an important wintering grounds for Tule Greater White-fronted Geese. The Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex provides nearly 70,000 acres of wetland, grassland, and riparian riparian
Definition of riparian habitat or riparian areas.
Learn more about riparian habitats for a wide array of waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors, waterbirds, songbirds, reptiles, and mammals. The Complex currently supports nearly 300 species of birds.
Click on the link below to learn more about our Seasons of Wildlife, Wildlife Checklist, Wildlife Surveys, and Our Species....