About Port Louisa National Wildlife Refuge
The 24,149 acre Port Louisa National Wildlife Refuge was established for the protection of migratory birds and other wildlife. Although the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has managed part of the refuge since the early 1940s, it was officially established as part of the Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge Complex in 1958. In 2004, after years of land acquisition along the Mississippi River, the refuge complex was divided into five separate refuges and Port Louisa National Wildlife Refuge was officially established. It is located in Iowa and Illinois along the Mississippi River Flyway, one of the major routes for migrating waterfowl. Each spring and fall for thousands of years, the Mississippi River corridor has served as an important migration route for millions of birds. Waterfowl provide spectacular seasonal flights with thousands of mallards, pintails, wigeons, blue and green-winged teals, scaups, shovelers, gadwalls, canvasbacks and geese using the waters. Refuge wetlands also provide important mudflats and shallow water habitats where herons, egrets and shorebirds can feed and rest. Marshy areas provide habitat for species such as rails and bitterns. The best places to see waterfowl are from the refuge overlooks on the Louisa Division. The refuge encompasses four divisions and a portion of the Iowa River Corridor Project. The 2,609-acre Louisa Division is located just east of Wapello, Iowa in Louisa County. It is protected from moderate flooding by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers levee that stretches to Lock and Dam 17 and is approximately one mile south of the division border. The levee is integral to maintaining the nine-foot navigation channel due to its proximity to the dam. The refuge visitor contact station and office are located on this division in an area that includes 48-acres of forest and a four-acre prairie restoration situated on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River floodplain. Providing habitat for migrating waterfowl has been the primary objec
