McNary National Wildlife Refuge - Washington State Park

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McNary National Wildlife Refuge

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National Park Overview
Extending along the east bank of the Columbia River from the confluence of the Snake River to the mouth of the Walla Walla River and downstream into Oregon, the McNary National Wildlife Refuge preserves a priceless diversity of fish, wildlife and plants.

McNary Refuge serves as an anchor for biodiversity and ecosystem-level conservation. Refuge bays and shorelines are critical nurseries for developing fall Chinook salmon and passageways for endangered steelhead, sockeye and Chinook salmon stocks.

Up to half of Pacific Flyway mallards winter in this portion of the Columbia Basin. The Wallula Delta is the premiere habitat in the region for thousands of migrating shorebirds and wading birds.

Rare and endangered birds, including bald eagles and peregrine falcons -re found here -s are thousands of colonial nesting water birds using river islands for safe nesting. Encompassing more than 15,000 acres of Columbia Basin desert and river environment in eastern Washington, refuge habitats include rivers, backwater sloughs, shrub-steppe uplands, irrigated farmlands, river islands and delta mud flats.

Nature of the Area
McNary Refuge includes a rich diversity of habitats. To provide more wildlife, refuge staff members use a variety of carefully chosen habitat management techniques to maintain, recover, or enhance habitat. Refuge ponds and backwater sloughs serve as year-round resting, nesting and feeding areas for many species of wildlife. Seasonally flooded wetlands provide additional resting and feeding areas and are especially important to waterfowl during fall migration.

Management of these seasonal wetlands involves the manipulation of water levels to encourage native food supplies and promote the diverse wetland plant growth that provides a variety of food and shelter for wildlife. Some wetlands are burned and disked to remove undesirable plant growth and create open areas. Shoreline burning and mowing also create open beach areas that waterfowl use for courting, feeding, resting and raising young. Common upland plants include sagebrush, rabbitbrush and bunchgrasses. Upland areas provide forage for deer and nesting sites for pheasants, ducks, California quail and burrowing owls.

Refuge managers improve uplands through prescribed burning, removal of exotic weed species and planting of native grasses. Riparian habitat is the soil and plant life that borders a river or stream. This habitat supplies food, water, nesting sites and shelter for a wide variety of wildlife. Cottonwoods and willows in riparian areas provide essential nesting habitat for migratory songbirds like yellow warbler and willow flycatchers. Management practices in riparian areas include planting native willows and cottonwoods.

Approximately 700 acres of refuge lands are irrigated croplands which provide food and cover for wildlife. Local farmers grow corn, wheat -lfalfa and other crops under a cooperative agreement whereby the refuges share of the crop is left in the field for wildlife. These crops provide an extremely valuable source of high energy food for waterfowl, especially in late winter when other food sources may be exhausted or covered by snow.

Fishing and Hunting
Hunting

Waterfowl hunt permit applications for the Burbank Slough Fee Hunt Area of McNary National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) are provided online. Each hunter can submit only one application and all applications must be submitted by mail.

Applications for advanced reservations on the Fee Hunt Area will be accepted for the entire state waterfowl season on one application. Please read the instructions carefully before filling out the form.

There is a non-refundable $5.00 application fee, which must be submitted with your application. No cash will be accepted ( it will be sent back to you!). Please make personal checks or certified checks/money orders payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

When choosing dates it is important to remember

1. The Washinton waterfowl season dates will be determined soon. Check with the Washington Department of Wildlife for specific dates.

2. The Burbank Slough Fee Hunt Area of McNary NWR is open for hunting three days per week Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays -s well as Thanksgiving Day and New Years Day. The non-fee areas of McNary NWR (Peninsula, Two Rivers and Wallula Units) have different hunt days. See the McNary NWR general hunt information page and specific "tearsheet" for information on these other hunt units.

3. No permit applications for adults are accepted for Youth Hunt Days, Saturday December 3rd. To apply for the Youth Hunt Day, youths must send a standard postcard with name -ddress and the words "McNary RefugeYouth Hunt Day". Youths must be 1027 years old to apply for a permit and participate in this hunt, have a hunter safety card and must be accompanied by an adult companion at least 21 years old (two older companions per youth hunter will be allowed). Permit application fee andthe hunt blind fees will be waived for youth hunters and their companions for the Youth Hunt Day. Applications for the Youth Hunt must be received by November 7, 2005. There will be no standby drawing available for non-youth hunters on Youth Hunt Day.

4. Reservation permit holders will receive numbers designating the order of blind selection. The permittee with the lowest number receives first choice of blind sites. Reservation holders selecting Slough Blinds will be allowed three guests. Reservation holders selecting Field Blinds will be allowed a maximum of three guests. After the reservation holders have selected their hunting sites, unoccupied sites will be filled by standby hunters -ccording to a drawing conducted at the Hunter Check Station.

5. Blind fees for both permittees and standby hunters are $8.00 per hunter payable at the time of the hunt by cash, certified check or money order or personal check. Also - $50.00 season pass is available and may be purchased at the Hunter Check Station. There is no fee for youth hunters aged 15 years and younger. Holders of Golden Age or Golden Access cards pay half price for hunt fees (daily hunt fee or season pass).

6. Upland bird hunting (pheasants only) is allowed on the Burbank Slough Fee Hunt Area of McNary NWR from noon until the end of state shooting hours on Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesday, Thanksgiving Day and New Years Day. No permit or check-in will be required for upland hunters for the 20052006 hunt season.

7. All hunters must access the Burbank Slough Fee Hunt Area of McNary NWR from one of five designated parking areas.

8. During the 20052006 hunting season the hunter check station will be staffed from 1? hours before legal shooting hours until 800am on scheduled hunt days. The check station will reopen each hunt day at 1130am for a drawing for afternoon hunting and closes for the day at 100pm.

More Info

McNary NWR/MEECE Wetlands habitat for migrating water fowl on the Columbia River in Central Washington mid-Pacific flyway.
Check out the restoration area now ongoing by Lake Road. Click here for
...ary NWR/MEECE describes refuge complex and wetlands in particular
McNARY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE The McNary National Wildlife Refuge is part of the Mid-Columbia River Refuge Complex on the
...d Checklists of the United States McNary National Wildlife Refuge Burbank, Washington McNary National Wildlife Refuge is located in the Lower Columbia Basin of eastern Washington -djacent to

WA Little Pend Oreille National Wildlife Refuge -- Colville, WA (Updated 3/97) McNary National Wildlife Refuge -- Burbank, WA (Printed 1/94) Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest -- WA Naval Radio
...epage for the McNary National Wildlife Refuge
of America in the Mid-Columbia River Basin McNary National Wildlife RefugeBurbank, Washington 64 Maple Street P.O. Box 544 Burbank
...cial Events calendar.
Guest"The Blue Goose" October 12, 2002Refuge Week Celebration at McNary National Wildlife Refuge In celebration of National Wildlife Refuge Week - fun-filled and

13, 900 a.m. Second Saturday Celebration, McNary National Wildlife Refuge All about watera nonrenewable resource we
of life. McNary National Wildlife Refuge headquarters, 311 Lake

Columbia Basin Chapter of the WNPS promotes the appreciation and conservation of Washingtons
steppe demonstration site at McNary National Wildlife Refuge. The site will be located -

within an hour drive of Walla Walla. 1. Walla Walla River Delta and the McNary National Wildlife Refuge The delta is fast becoming one of the hottest birding spots in Eastern Washington. Spring

Park McNary Dam (Lake Wallula/Lake Umatilla) McNary National Wildlife Refuge McNary Wildlife Nature Area (Lake Umatilla
Nature Area McNary National Wildlife Refuge General Information

of Engineers Walla Walla District McNary Master Plan Section 9Development Plans Plate 9-24 McNary National Wildlife Refuge Return to the McNary Master Plan Page blaise.g.grden@usace.army.mil
reactor, the Arid Lands Ecology Reserve and Pacific Northwest Laboratory (Battelle) the McNary National Wildlife Refuge and other wetlands U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Walla Walla District

Nature Programs
McNary Refuge includes a rich diversity of habitats. To provide more wildlife, refuge staff members use a variety of carefully chosen habitat management techniques to maintain, recover, or enhance habitat. Refuge ponds and backwater sloughs serve as year-round resting, nesting and feeding areas for many species of wildlife. Seasonally flooded wetlands provide additional resting and feeding areas and are especially important to waterfowl during fall migration.

Management of these seasonal wetlands involves the manipulation of water levels to encourage native food supplies and promote the diverse wetland plant growth that provides a variety of food and shelter for wildlife. Some wetlands are burned and disked to remove undesirable plant growth and create open areas. Shoreline burning and mowing also create open beach areas that waterfowl use for courting, feeding, resting and raising young. Common upland plants include sagebrush, rabbitbrush and bunchgrasses. Upland areas provide forage for deer and nesting sites for pheasants, ducks, California quail and burrowing owls.

Refuge managers improve uplands through prescribed burning, removal of exotic weed species and planting of native grasses. Riparian habitat is the soil and plant life that borders a river or stream. This habitat supplies food, water, nesting sites and shelter for a wide variety of wildlife. Cottonwoods and willows in riparian areas provide essential nesting habitat for migratory songbirds like yellow warbler and willow flycatchers. Management practices in riparian areas include planting native willows and cottonwoods.

Approximately 700 acres of refuge lands are irrigated croplands which provide food and cover for wildlife. Local farmers grow corn, wheat -lfalfa and other crops under a cooperative agreement whereby the refuges share of the crop is left in the field for wildlife. These crops provide an extremely valuable source of high energy food for waterfowl, especially in late winter when other food sources may be exhausted or covered by snow.