Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, National Wildlife Refuge in Melbourne Beach and Wabasso Beach, United States

Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge runs for 20 miles (30 km) along State Road A1A from Melbourne Beach to Wabasso Beach in Brevard and Indian River counties, Florida. The 900-acre refuge protects sandy Atlantic beaches and dunes where sea turtles nest; three centers within it are run by Brevard County under federal restrictions.

The United States established this protected area in 1991 to safeguard critical nesting sites for sea turtles. The landscape has been shaped by decades of scientific research into these marine animals.

The refuge carries the name of Archie Carr, the zoologist who founded the Caribbean Conservation Corporation, the turtle conservation group that partners with the refuge. Since 2012 it has been administered as part of the Everglades Headwaters NWR Complex, together with Pelican Island NWR, Lake Wales Ridge NWR and the Everglades Headwaters conservation area.

The refuge runs along State Road A1A from Melbourne Beach to Wabasso Beach, about 7 km from Palm Bay. Three centers inside the sanctuary are run by Brevard County under federal restrictions, so check locally before setting out. The terrain is flat, barely 2 m above sea level, with the Atlantic on the east side.

About one-fourth of all sea turtles nesting in the United States lay their eggs here, roughly 15,000 to 20,000 nests a year, mostly loggerheads and greens with some leatherbacks. The refuge is named for Dr. Archie Carr, whose Caribbean Conservation Corporation helps manage it.