DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge
DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge, Wildlife refuge on Missouri River banks in Nebraska and Iowa.
DeSoto Lake stretches seven miles through the refuge, providing essential habitats for thirty different mammal species and numerous bird populations.
The 1865 Bertrand steamboat wreck, discovered in 1968 within the refuge boundaries, yielded over 500,000 preserved artifacts from the Missouri River.
The refuge serves as a primary stopover on the Central Flyway, where half a million snow geese gather during their migration between Arctic and Gulf Coast.
The visitor center operates Tuesday through Saturday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM, while refuge roads remain accessible from sunrise to sunset.
A conservation project in 1960 relocated the Missouri River channel westward, transforming the original river bend into the current DeSoto Lake.
Location: Nebraska
Inception: March 12, 1958
Operator: United States Fish and Wildlife Service
Website: https://fws.gov/refuge/desoto
GPS coordinates: 41.52370,-96.01790
Latest update: May 10, 2025 19:49
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