Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge Celebrates 100 Years

This edition of OutdoorIllinois Journal celebrates the Upper Mississippi River and Lower Illinois River Bottomlands Natural Division, with one site within the Natural Division celebrating a centennial anniversary.

On June 7, 2024, the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge (Refuge) celebrated its first 100 years. The Refuge is part of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’ National Wildlife Refuge System that includes 571 refuges nationwide containing 855 million acres (95 million acres is land and 760 million acres is marine) with a primary goal to conserve natural resources. The Refuge extends 261 miles and includes 244,000 acres within Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Founding of the Refuge

The Refuge was established due to efforts by members of the Izaak Walton League and the Federation of Women’s Clubs of America who were appalled at the environmental conditions on the Mississippi River in the early 1920s. Backwaters and wetlands were being drained to accommodate the expansion of farming and logging. Congress subsequently approved $1.5 million in 1924 to protect 300 miles of the Upper Mississippi River.

Establishment of the Refuge resulted in a significant conservation effort on the Upper Mississippi River. It preserved islands, backwater lakes, flowing side channels, floodplain forests and natural resources from being decimated. Public recreation also benefited as it is the most visited national wildlife refuge within the National Wildlife Refuge System with more than 3 million visitors annually.

Natural Heritage of the District

The Refuge’s Savanna District (District) includes 73 miles of the Mississippi River within Rock Island, Whiteside, Carroll and Jo Daviess counties in Illinois. The District has several unique areas including the 3,600-acre Spring Lake that lies south of Savanna. The lake is a primary migration stopover area for tens of thousands of waterfowl. Many species of ducks, geese and swans, as well as American white pelicans and sandhill cranes, annually visit Spring Lake staying until Mother Nature freezes the lake and forces the birds south. Due to its importance as a migration stopover area, it is a designated sanctuary with restricted public access from October 1 through the end of Illinois’ duck hunting season.

Woodruff’s Island and Pelican Island located near Thomson are home to several colonial nesting waterbird species. The most visible species is the American white pelican, which returned to our section of the river in the 1980s after being absent for nearly 80 years. In 2009, they began nesting on these two islands making it the first documented nesting of pelicans in Illinois. Within the nesting colony there are also double-crested cormorants, great egrets, great blue herons and ring-billed gulls.

Bald eagles are a common site on the Refuge. In 1972, only one bald eagle nest was found within the 261 miles of the Refuge. Today, the Refuge is annually home to more than 400 bald eagle nests. A major concentration area for the winter migration of eagles occurs at Lock and Dam 13 in Fulton. When the main channel of the Mississippi River freezes, the only open water is the tailwaters of the Lock and Dam where an all-you-can-eat buffet of fish floats. Hundreds of eagles typically congregate there in winter. In January 2014, more than 1,000 bald eagles were gorging themselves on fish at this location.

The Great River Trail meanders through the Refuge’s Savanna District. It ambles through the Thomson Natural Research Area, a 360-acre sand prairie that lies along the Mississippi River shoreline. This sand prairie provides important habitat for the ornate box turtle (Illinois threatened) and Blanding’s turtle (Illinois endangered). Illinois has lost 99.9 percent of sand prairies due to agricultural, commercial and residential development.

The Great River Trail also connects to the Ingersoll Wetlands Learning Center at 7071 Riverview Road in Thomson. The Visitor Center has a unique display of wildlife species and provides many types of educational learning opportunities. For more information on the Refuge and activities offered, call the Visitor Center at (815) 273-2732.

Lost Mound Unit

The Refuge includes 9,600 acres at Lost Mound Unit, formerly the Savanna Army Depot. Lost Mound has the largest (4,000 acres) native sand prairie/savanna in the State of Illinois. Fifty-one species of threatened/endangered wildlife and plants have been documented there, including three plants that are state records, found nowhere else in Illinois. Due to ongoing environmental cleanup including unexploded ordnance, public access is restricted to certain sections.

Two special deer hunts are held at Lost Mound in areas that are closed to public access. The weekend prior to Illinois’ first Firearm Season, hunters with disabilities participate. The weekend of the first Firearms Season, a youth/family hunt is held in which family members can hunt with youth (10–17 years old). There are 35 designated hunt sites for both hunts that are awarded during a random drawing.

Habitat Restoration

The Refuge partners with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program. The program has provided millions of dollars for habitat restoration in Illinois. Projects have included backwater restoration of Stone Lake, Tippy Lake, Sunfish Lake and Kehough Slough in Jo Daviess County; levee repair and the placement of water control structures at Spring Lake in Carroll County; and, backwater restoration at Potter’s Marsh in Whiteside County.

Stewards of the Upper Mississippi River Refuge is the friends group that provides vital support to the Refuge. They conduct outreach and educational activities that include Kids Fishing Day, bus tours at Lost Mound, golf cart tours along the Great River Trail and eagle counts. Their live streaming video camera documented the incredible story of a bald eagle trio (two dads) that nested near Lock and Dam 13 for many years until their breakup in 2022 when avian influenza caused mass mortality of waterbirds on the river.

Jr. Stewards is an exciting youth program (ages 9–14+) offered in partnership with the Stewards. This program seeks to stimulate curiosity about nature, inspire lifelong learning, strengthen skills of observation, investigation, and imagination, while increasing a sense of wonder. They meet the first Saturday of each month from February through December and participate in activities to learn about nature.

The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge is an important natural resource in the State of Illinois. It provides unique habitats for many species of fish, wildlife and plants and will continue to preserve these natural resources for another 100 years.

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Ed Britton has worked for the National Wildlife Refuge System for 47 years. His career has spanned many locations including the Atlantic Ocean, Delaware Bay, Chesapeake Bay, Tennessee River, Lower Mississippi River and Illinois River. He is currently the Wildlife Refuge Manager at Savanna District of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge where he has worked for 29 years. He explained that his boots are stuck in the mud of the Upper Mississippi River and he can’t get out!