Area 15.01 km² Nearest city Palm Desert | Established 1985 | |
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Location Riverside County, California, United States Governing body U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Website Coachella Valley National Wildlife Refuge Management United States Fish and Wildlife Service | ||
Coachella Valley National Wildlife Refuge is a 3,709-acre (15.01 km2) protected area in the Coachella Valley, located east of Palm Springs near Palm Desert, California. The refuge contains the majority of critical habitat for the Coachella Valley Fringe-toed Lizard (Uma inornata) within the Coachella Valley Preserve and Indio Hills Palms State Reserve.
Contents
Refuge habitatEdit
The habitat of this threatened species is restricted to the refuge's dune system and a few other small areas. This dune system is in jeopardy as development threatens sand sources and the Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard's travel corridors.
AccessEdit
The refuge, managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, provides for the only significant habitat acreage that is not available for multiple recreating uses by the public. The Coachella Valley Refuge is almost entirely closed to the public to protect the federally listed threatened Coachella Valley Fringe-toed Lizard. However, there is a trail that runs through a section of the refuge available for horseback riders.