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Established: 1980.
Acres: 64,012.
Location: Madison, Tensas and Franklin parishes, LA.
Other management: conservation easements–11 in three parishes totaling 1066 acres.
Fee title tracts: 4 in three parishes totaling 1,656 acres.
Location: the refuge is located 7 miles west of Tallulah, LA on U.S. Hwy. 80, then 8 miles south on the Quebec Road.
Natural History:
Refuge is in the upper basin of the Tensas River in northeast Louisiana which was the last documented home of the ivory-billed woodpecker.Home to one of the last concentrations of the threatened Louisiana black bear.In 1907, Teddy Roosevelt hunted bear just north of the refuge boundary and the “Teddy Bear” was introduced as a result of an incident during the hunt.Concentrations of ducks, geese, raptors, wading birds and shorebirds.Several rookeries present. Open water 1,514 acres, woodlands 54,808 acres, croplands 3,007 acres, reforested former agricultural fields 2,413 acres, moist soil management 1,000 acres.
Financial Impact of Refuge:
12-person staff.
72,000 visitors annually.
Current budget (FY 05) $1,169,000.
Refuge Objectives:
For preservation and development of environmental resources.
Conserve diversity of fish and wildlife and their habitats.
Development of outdoor recreation opportunities and interpretive education.
Management Tools:
Water management for waterfowl, wading birds and shorebirds.Cooperative farming to provide habitat for migratory birds and Louisiana black bears.Forest habitat management for bears, neo-tropical birds and other forest dwelling species.Education/interpretation.Deer management with public hunting.Outreach programs to get the message of the Service to the public and information to users.Law enforcement to provide safety for the using public and protection of the resources.
Partnerships to make programs ecosystem in scope.
Public Use Opportunities:
Trails, auto tour route, fishing, two observation towers, wildlife observation, photography, and hunting (including youth hunts).
