Location Bailey County, Texas Elevation 1,143 m Phone +1 806-946-3341 | Nearest city Muleshoe, Texas Area 202.3 km² Established 1935 | |
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Governing body U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Address 1531 County Road 1248, Muleshoe, TX 79347, USA Management United States Fish and Wildlife Service Similar Muleshoe Independ School, Muleshoe School District S, Muleshoe Journal, Channel 6, Muleshoe Area Hospital | ||
Muleshoe national wildlife refuge
Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge is the oldest National Wildlife Refuge in the U.S. state of Texas, having been established in 1935. It is located about twenty miles (32 km) south of Muleshoe, the seat of Bailey County. It is some fifteen miles (24 km) north of Morton on Texas State Highway 214.
Contents
The refuge includes several intermittent salt lakes, some of which have been modified to extend their wet periods. Paul's Lake, on the east side of Highway 214, is spring fed, and hosts wildlife during times when the other lakes are dry.
The 5,000-acre (20 km2) refuge is a stop for migratory waterfowl flying between Canada and Mexico. If sufficient water is present, during the winter it hosts tens of thousands of sandhill cranes. The largest number of cranes ever recorded was 250,000, during February, 1981.
The cranes are most visible at dawn and at dusk, as they leave the lakes during the day to feed in nearby fields.
Other wildlife includes wood warblers, meadowlarks, raptors, burrowing owls, blacktailed prairie dogs, jackrabbits, cottontail rabbits, coyotes, and badgers.
The prairie ecosystem includes plant life such as wildflowers, grasses, yucca, cacti, and mesquite. Rangeland management techniques include controlled burning and grazing.
Northeast of White Lake is a small area of white gypsum dunes, similar to those found at White Sands National Monument in New Mexico, though these are much less expansive.