Welcome to Mississippi Sandhill Crane NWR

Check out our Activities and Events Calendar.

Visitor Center Open Tuesday - Saturday, 9am to 3pm, Entry is free. (Closed on Federal Holidays)

The Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge is part of the Gulf Coast Refuge Complex, which includes Grand Bay NWR and Bon Secour NWR. The refuge was established in 1975 under authority of the Endangered Species Act to protect the critically endangered Mississippi sandhill cranes and their unique, and itself endangered, wet pine savanna habitat. The crane population, at that time only 30-35 birds, is currently at approximately 110 birds. Through captive rearing and reintroduction to the area as well as wild birds nesting in the savannas, the crane population continues to grow. The refuge also protects and restores the last large expanses of wet pine savanna, primarily through the use of prescribed fire. The wet pine savanna is one of the most diverse ecosystems in the U.S. with more than 30 plants found in a square meter of land. To learn more about the cranes, the savanna, our prescribed fire program and opportunities to visit the refuge, please check the links to the left. Currently, the refuge complex, as a whole, is working to assist wildlife and habitat in the midst of the devastating Gulf Coast oil spill. For updated information about goings-on at the refuge, please check our Facebook page and the oil spill link below.
	Check out the Mississippi Sandhill Crane NWR on Facebook!
	Want to see what we've been doing over the last year? Great news archive here. See videos of crane banding, photos of prescribed fire, crane nests, educational groups and more!
	Check out the USFWS on Facebook!
	Visit the official USFWS Oil Spill website for more information on what we're doing along the gulf coast.