Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge

Weekly waterfowl counts released by the Refuge are used to track the migration of species which pass through, including snowgeese. Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge (renamed in January 2017 from Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge) is a National Wildlife Refuge in northwestern Missouri, United States, established in 1935 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife. The refuge comprises along the eastern edge of the Missouri River floodplain south of Mound City, Missouri in Holt County, Missouri. The refuge is bounded by the Loess Hills on the east with a trail going to the top built originally by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The most dramatic moments occur during spring and fall migrations, when the refuge serves as a chokepoint for hundreds of thousands of ducks and geese (particularly snow geese) on the Central Flyway. As many as 475 bald eagles have been sighted on the refuge in the winter. The refuge annually celebrates the eagle visits with "Eagle Days" celebrations. In February 2013, over one million snow geese were counted. The refuge derived its original name from Squaw Creek, a stream originating about north at the Bilby Ranch Conservation Area in Nodaway County, Missouri that is dammed to form the reservoirs. The creek is the larger of the two main creeks that feed the refuge and parallels the road on the west. Davis Creek, the next biggest creek, parallels the east side road. They merge with the Little Tarkio Creek just south of the refuge in a man made ditch leading five miles (8 km) to the Missouri River.