About Pilot Knob National Wildlife Refuge
Pilot Knob National Wildlife Refuge is located on top of Pilot Knob Mountain in Iron County, MO. It was acquired by donation from the Pilot Knob Ore Company on July 22, 1987 for conservation purposes. The 90-acre refuge contains iron mine shafts created in the mid-1800s which are critical habitat for the Federally endangered Indiana bat and gray bat. Bats enter the shafts in the fall to hibernate then exit in the spring. Up to a third of the known world population of Indiana bats is believed to hibernate in the old mine. The refuge is managed by staff at Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, in Puxico, MO.
