About Us
Spanning the 117,464-acre refuge are several distinct groups of plants and animals known as biotic communities, that are dependent on each other. Visitors will enjoy the semi-desert grasslands that blend into the cottonwoods and willow that line riverbanks and wetlands within the refuge. Settled in amongst the grasslands and wetlands is a beautiful sycamore-shaded canyon of extraordinary diversity. Brown Canyon is home to 200-million-year-old volcanic rocks that support a distinct variety of plants and animals that have evolved within this amazing sky island ecosystem.
Established in 1985, the refuge was created under the authority of the Endangered Species Act. Open to the public, visitors can enjoy wildlife watching and photography, hunting, fishing, wildlife photography and special wildlife-related events. It is one of more than 560 refuges that comprise the National Wildlife Refuge System, a national network of public lands and waters set aside for the benefit of wildlife and you!
Our Mission
The mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System is to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management and, where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Our Purpose
Every national wildlife refuge national wildlife refuge
A national wildlife refuge is typically a contiguous area of land and water managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the conservation and, where appropriate, restoration of fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Learn more about national wildlife refuge was created for a special purpose. Some were created to protect migratory birds, others to protect threatened or endangered species or unique habitats, while others fulfill another special purpose. Refuges are special places where wildlife comes first. All activities allowed on refuges must be evaluated to make sure each activity will not conflict with the reason the refuge was founded.
Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge was established for the reintroduction of masked bobwhite quail, and to restore the natural landscapes and native wildlife that depend upon it.
Our History
In the 1850's, Pedro Aguirre, Jr. came to this location and started a stagecoach and freight line that would connect Tucson and Arivaca, Arizona, to the town of Altar in Sonora, Mexico. He built a homestead here in 1864 and named it Buenos Ayres, or "good air," because of the constant winds.
Aguirre was the first person to develop artificial water sources. He began by constructing a large reservoir near the head of the watershed wherethe Lopez and Compartidero washes meet. With water in place, Aguirre and his neighbors could capitalize on the abundance of forage in the central Altar Valley.
The cattle industry in southeastern Arizona exploded on the landscape as the water supply was secured. Then came the railroads that opened new markets. But the cattle industry would suffer a setback. A severe drought in the region lasted from 1885-1892 and it would result in the loss of 50 to 70 percent of the cattle herds. Bones of the dead cattle lay on the range, their bones littering the landscape. The cattle that remained stripped the land bare. When the rains returned, there was no vegetation left to absorb the water and the rain eroded the landscape creating the washes and gullies we see today.
The landscape was so barren it could not even support the wildfires that naturally swept through the region. Wildfires added vital nutrients to the soil and also served to prune the landscape. Without this important natural process, brush and mesquite trees soon invaded. More mesquite was put on the landscape by ranchers who planted the trees in the washes to provide shade and food for livestock. The mesquite would spread across the valley and by the end of the 19th century the grasslands were gone, as were the masked bobwhite quail that depended on this unique habitat.
Between 1909 and 1985, Buenos Aires Ranch changed ownership several times. It became one of the most prominent and successful livestock operations in Arizona. From 1926 to 1959, the Gill family raised prize-winning racing quarter horses. During the 1970s and 80s, the Victorio Land and Cattle Company specialized in purebred Brangus cattle, which are well suited to hot, dry climates.
On February 20, 1985, Secretary of the Interior Donald Hodel announced that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would purchase the Buenos Aires Ranch as a national wildlife refuge national wildlife refuge
A national wildlife refuge is typically a contiguous area of land and water managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the conservation and, where appropriate, restoration of fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Learn more about national wildlife refuge for the endangered masked bobwhite. At that time, Secretary Hodel expressed the agency’s belief that the Buenos Aires Ranch was the only place in the United States providing suitable habitat for the masked bobwhite. Since that time, refuge staff, wildlife biologists, volunteers and many partners have worked together to restore the original landscape of open, semidesert grasslands and bring back the native wildlife that once called these lush prairies home.