Three Texas National Wildlife Refuges, which offer a range of wildlife-dependent recreation, scored a solid A+ for visitor satisfaction. Ninety-five percent of visitors said they "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that they were satisfied with their experience, according to a soon-to-be-published U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service survey conducted nation-wide.
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2 Two of the refuges, Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge in Chambers County and Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Refugio County are coastal refuges. Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge in Hidalgo County is along theRio Grande near its mouth.
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Visitors were most satisfied with the service they received from employees and volunteers. They ranked their satisfaction level at a 4.7 rating out of a possible five. Respondents specifically noted that employees and volunteers were courteous and answered questions about the refuge, and its fish, wildlife, plants, habitats and recreational opportunities.
"We are extraordinarily proud of these results," said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Steve Williams. "The Refuge System is providing top-quality recreation and family education programs that will have a lasting impact on the health of our wildlife resources for generations to come."
Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge
Our visitors have really appreciated the new improvements at the refuge- which include the visitor information station, new restrooms, better interpretive signage, the Shoveler Pond boardwalk and our butterfly and hummingbird landscape plantings," said Andy Loranger, Project Leader for the Texas Chenier Plains Complex which includes the Anahuac refuge. "We are fortunate to have knowledgeable and talented volunteers to help us serve visitors and answer questions. Our volunteers donate about 10,000 hours each year." More than 80 percent of the survey respondents said staff and volunteers were very courteous and helpful.
Anahuac is a 34,000 acre coastal refuge which is an important link in the chain of protected habitats along the gulf coast of Texas. Anahuac refuge is one of the best places in the nation to see alligators.
This month many visitors are focused on seeing yellow rails, a secretive hen-shaped marsh bird. Volunteer naturalists will host yellow rail walks every weekend from March 26 to April 24.
"April is the best time of year to see songbirds and shorebirds during migration. We have had visitors from more than 30 countries and all 50 states," said Loranger.
Call the refuge at 409-267-3337 for more information.
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
"People come here to see wildlife and almost everyone sees at least one family of endangered whooping cranes from the 40 foot observatory tower," said one of the volunteers. Aransas is the winter home for 216 endangered whooping cranes. Cranes feed among the short, salt-tolerant vegetation that forms the brackish tidal marshes. By mid-April the cranes will have migrated north to Canada for breeding and nesting and wont return until October. Whooping cranes migrate in their family groups instead of flocks such as ducks and geese.
Mild winters, bay waters and abundant food supplies attract over 392 species of birds to Aransas, including pelicans, herons, egrets, spoonbills, shorebirds, ducks and geese. The same habitat also attracts thousands of migratory birds. On their journey between North and Central America, warblers concentrate on the refuge from mid-April to early May.
Visitors to the 70,504 acre refuge can drive the 16 mile wildlife tour loop or hike one of the seven walking trails. Providing good visitor information was an area in which survey respondents ranked Aransas highly. For more information, call the refuge at 361-286-3559.
Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge
"In the last few years, weve had an explosion in the number of bird and butterfly watching tourists," said Ken Merritt, manager of the South Texas Refuges Complex which includes Laguna Atascosa, Lower Rio Grande Valley and Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuges. "Laguna Atascosa, in fact the whole valley, has become a prime destination for birders from all over the world."
The 45,000 acre refuge is a unique blending of temperate, subtropical, coastal, and desert habitats. Mexican plants and wildlife are at the northernmost edge of their range, while migrating waterfowl and sandhill cranes fly down for the mild winters. This combination makes Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge world famous for its birds.
The visitor center is a good place to begin as it has educational exhibits and a video overview. In fact, 83 percent of those surveyed felt strongly that the volunteers and employees at Laguna Atascosa were helpful and courteous. The 15 mile bay loop passes through thorn forests and coastal prairies -- there are several pullouts that allow for wildlife viewing. The refuge has a viewing/photography blind alongside an area with water that attracts birds. There are several hiking trails from which to choose including one to Alligator Pond, which usually has an alligator or two visible from the board walk.
"A special emphasis has been placed on providing an excellent experience for our visitors," said Merritt. "Weve put in a new butterfly garden and are expanding and upgrading our visitor center. We have telescopes set up so people can see the wildlife clearly and safely. There is a lot to see and do here." The numbers bear up his statement as all those surveyed agreed or strongly agreed that they were very satisfied with the quality of their visit. Call the refuge at 956-784-7500 for more information.
Survey results are based on responses from 2,456 visitors at 47 wildlife refuges in the fall 2004, during the peak migration of waterfowl and songbirds and the surveyed refuges represent a cross-section of National Wildlife Refuges, based on number of visitors and staff, physical size, and geographic location, a time when visitors flock to wildlife refuges as well.
Established on Year1903March 14, 1903, by President Theodore Roosevelt, the National Wildlife Refuge System encompasses 545 wildlife refuges across nearly100 million acres. It provides habitat for more than 700 species of birds, 220 kinds of mammals and more than 200 types of fish. Each year, millions of migrating birds rest and feed within this network of lands as they fly south for the winter and return north for the summer.
National Wildlife Refuges are premier vacation and outdoor destinations. Each year, more than 40 million people visit National Wildlife Refuges. More than 6 million people visit National Wildlife Refuges to hunt and fish, and millions more to photograph or simply observe wildlife.
"Welcoming and orienting visitors to wildlife refuges is a priority for us and we are working very hard to bring people closer to the outdoors," said Assistant Director for Refuges William Hartwig.
Wildlife refuges are also a boon to local economies. They created nearly 19,000 jobs and more than $318 million in employment income, according to the Banking on Nature 2002 report. The total for sales and tourism related revenue plus employment income - $1.12 billion - is nearly four times the $320 million that the National Wildlife Refuge System received in fiscal year 2002 for its operation and maintenance.
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2 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
-http://southwest.fws.gov-
