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Arizona
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State of Arizona Parks

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USA Parks
Arizona
West Coast Region
Imperial National Wildlife Refuge
Imperial National Wildlife Refuge © USFWS / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Imperial National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona/California
Imperial National Wildlife Refuge © Glenn Thoreson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Mesquite Point at Imperial NWR
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IMPERIAL NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE
IMPERIAL NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE
P.O. Box 72217
Yuma, Arizona   85365

Phone: 928-783-3371
Email: park email button icon
Imperial National Wildlife Refuge protects wildlife habitat along 30 miles of the lower Colorado River in Arizona and California, including the last unchannelized section before the river enters Mexico.

The river and its associated backwater lakes and wetlands are a green oasis, contrasting with the surrounding desert mountains.

More than 15,000 acres of Imperial National Wildlife Refuge is designated as wilderness. Wilderness is protected to ensure that nature, not people is the primary influence on this quiet, scenic place.

Nature of the Area
In the desert, wildlife such as black-tailed jackrabbits and western whiptail lizards are plentiful. Watch at dawn and dusk for desert bighorn sheep and mule deer heading to the river for a drink.

Ducks, geese, shorebirds, and other waterbirds flock to the lower Colorado River each year to spend the winter. Cinnamon teal and Northern pintail are just a few of the species.

History of the Area
At one time, the banks of the Colorado River were lined with cottonwood and willow forests, sustained by the river's natural periodic flooding. Animals depended on this green forest oasis for breeding, resting, feeding, and shade.

Woodcutting during the steamboat era, clearing for agriculture, wild fire, exotic plants like salt cedar, and use of dams for flood prevention have devastated cottonwood and willow stands along the lower Colorado River. Some animals that depend on these forests, such as the southwestern willow flycatcher, have become endangered.

FACILITIES AND ACTIVITIES OVERVIEW
Day-UseFishingyes
 Huntingyes
 Hiking Trailyes


Location
Imperial National Wildlife Refuge is located near Yuma


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Directions
From Yuma: Travel north on Highway 95 for 25 miles. Turn west on Martinez Lake Road for 13 miles and follow signs to visitor center.

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Arizona
70

State of Arizona Parks

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