Wildlife Drive Open

The Wildlife Drive will reopen starting Saturday, September 16th and is anticipated to remain open through the end of September.

The 10,000 acre Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1953 for use as an inviolate sanctuary and for any other management purposes of migratory birds. The refuge also serves as an ideal destination for recreation. As a designated Important Bird Area, it is a place of global significance for migratory waterfowl.
CLOSURES AHEAD

Due to upcoming deer hunts on the Refuge, the Ferguson Bayou hiking trail, the Woodland trail, and the Wildlife Drive are closed to all public use on the following dates in 2023:

  • Sept. 9 - Sept. 10 (Youth Hunt)
  • Oct. 1 - Oct. 7
  • Oct. 27 - Nov. 2
  • Nov. 15 - Nov. 18 (Non-Ambulatory Hunt)
  • Nov. 19 - Nov. 23
  • Nov. 25 - Nov. 30
  • Dec. 1 - Dec. 7
  • Dec. 15 - Dec. 21
  • Dec. 26 - Dec. 31

Please keep in mind that the Wildlife Drive closes for the season on October 1st.

Despite the closure of the building, the trails at Green Point Environmental Learning Center in Saginaw are available every day during daylight hours only. 

 

 The 2023 Waterfowl hunt at Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) is conducted through a self-registered lottery system and will occur during the State of Michigan regular waterfowl season for the southern zone (October 14th – December 10th).  For more information, check our Hunting tab under activities or our 2023 Regulation Sheet.

Visit Us

Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge provides several great opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. The mixture of bottomland forests and wetlands creates great waterways for canoeing and kayaking while also being great wildlife observation, hunting and fishing areas.

Location and Contact Information

      About Us

      The 10,000 acre Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1953 for use as an inviolate sanctuary and for any other management purposes of migratory birds. The refuge also serves as an ideal destination for recreation. As a designated Important Bird Area, it is a place of global significance for migratory waterfowl.

      What We Do

      Services
      Kayakers navigating a swamp full of trees and lily pads.
      Federal Recreation Passes

      Some 30 national wildlife refuges  charge visitors a nominal entrance fee (generally $3-$5 daily)  to cover road and facility maintenance.  If you are a regular visitor or would like to visit other public lands, you could save by buying an America the Beautiful Federal...

      Service
      Entrance Passes
      Silhouette of a person walking with a shotgun on the tundra
      Apply for a Special Use Permit on National Wildlife Refuges

      Some commercial, recreational and research activities are allowed on national wildlife refuges only with a special use permit issued by the local office, and are subject to specific conditions and fees. This permit requirement is meant to ensure that all activities at the federal site are...

      Service
      Communication
      Permits
      Business Owner/Commercial Business
      Educator/Education Facility
      Landowner - Commercial
      Landowner - Individual
      Oil/Gas Company
      Private Land Owners/Managers
      Researcher or Research Facility - Commercial Scientific
      2023-2024 Federal Duck Stamp featuring three tundra swans painted by Joseph Hautman from Minnesota. (c) USFWS
      Buy a Duck Stamp or E-Stamp

      Purchasing Federal Duck Stamps is easy! We offer a variety of methods for you to purchase the annual stamp – whether you need one for migratory bird hunting, admittance to a National Wildlife Refuge, as part of your stamp or art collection, to showcase the wildlife species, or because...

      Service
      Duck Stamps
      Images of Junior Duck Stamp Artwork from 2023 contest
      Host the Federal Duck Stamp or Junior Duck Stamp Art Exhibit

      Do you want to showcase some of the nation’s premier artwork? Would you like to celebrate art, conservation, and the outdoors?  Are you looking for a centerpiece or side exhibit for your special event, museum, art gallery, or exhibition? Each year the top placing artwork from the...

      Service
      Duck Stamps

      Our Species

      More than 280 species of migratory birds and more than 100 songbirds have been observed on the refuge. The refuge supports numerous species of colonial nesting waterbirds such as ring-billed and herring gulls, great blue herons and great egrets. The refuge is home to several pairs of nesting eagles. In the spring and summer visitors may see eastern fox snakes (non-venomous) or white-trailed deer while on the trails. Muskrats are active throughout the year, swimming along drainage and the wetlands. Visitors might observe American white pelicans resting during the summer in Maankiki Marsh.