About Us

Our Mission

Vision

Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge will play a vital role in the National Wildlife Refuge System. The refuge will establish a presence in the local community by partnering with agencies, developing research groups, and organizing friends groups and volunteers. The refuge will conserve and manage fish and wildlife species, such as threatened and endangered species, species of management concern, and interjurisdictional fish. Refuge staff and volunteers will protect the diverse habitats typical of the mid-Atlantic coastal ecosystem within which the refuge is situated, including coastal fringe forest, estuarine marsh, and longleaf pine savanna and fish nursery areas. Through active enhancement and management, the refuge will provide high-quality, mid-Atlantic, coastal habitat for migratory birds and other priority species. The Service l encourages visitors to the refuge to participate in compatible wildlife-dependent recreational activities. Working with others, Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge staff, partners, and volunteers will manage and protect the refuge’s natural resources to conserve a legacy of fish, wildlife, and plants for people to experience and appreciate in the years to come.

Refuge Purpose(s)

Each unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System is established to serve a statutory purpose that targets the conservation of native species dependent on its lands and waters. All activities on those acres are reviewed for compatibility with this statutory purpose.

­The purposes of Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge, as reflected in the legislation under which Congress authorized the refuge and the Service has acquired land, is to protect and conserve migratory birds, and other wildlife resources through the protection of wetlands, in accordance with the listed laws.

“...for use as an inviolate sanctuary, or for any other management purpose, for migratory birds..." 16 U.S.C. Sec. 664 (Migratory Bird Conservation Act of 1929);

“…for the development, advancement, management, conservation, and protection of fish and wildlife resources…” 16 U.S.C. Sec 742f(a)(4)

“…for the benefit of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, in performing its activities and services. Such acceptance may be subject to

the terms of any restrictive or affirmative covenant, or condition of servitude…” 16 U.S.C. 742f(b)(1) (Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956).

Other Facilities in this Complex

A National Wildlife Refuge Complex is an administrative grouping of two or more refuges, wildlife management areas or other refuge conservation areas that are primarily managed from a central office location. Refuges are grouped into a complex   structure structure
Something temporarily or permanently constructed, built, or placed; and constructed of natural or manufactured parts including, but not limited to, a building, shed, cabin, porch, bridge, walkway, stair steps, sign, landing, platform, dock, rack, fence, telecommunication device, antennae, fish cleaning table, satellite dish/mount, or well head.

Learn more about structure   because they occur in a similar ecological region, such as a watershed or specific habitat type, and have a related purpose and management needs.  

There are 9 national wildlife refuges in the Coastal North Carolina National Wildlife Refuges Complex. The Project Leader for the Complex supervises the Refuge Managers who are responsible for managing these refuges.  However, there are five distinct and separate administrative offices.  Alligator River and Pea Island National Wildlife Refuges are administered from the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters in Manteo, NC.  An administrative office at the Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters in Knotts Island, NC manages both Mackay Island and Currituck National Wildlife Refuges. An office at Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge administers Mattamuskeet, Swanquarter, and Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuges. Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Roanoke River National Wildlife Refuge, Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, and Edenton National Fish Hatchery each have separate administrative offices.

All of the Coastal North Carolina National Wildlife Refuges, Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, and Edenton National Fish Hatchery are open to public visits for nature-based recreational enjoyment. Priority public uses are hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, wildlife photography, environmental education, and interpretation.

A calm lake surface reflects a band of clouds and a line of cypress trees in the water
Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge
Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge features the largest natural freshwater lake in North Carolina, Lake Mattamuskeet, as well as marshes, swamp forests, and upland forests. The refuge supports large numbers of wintering waterfowl, as well as a variety of breeding songbirds, mammals such as black...
National Wildlife Refuge
Swan Quarter,NC
A forest fringed by grassy marsh is bordered by a partially submerged rock wall
Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge
Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1932 and protects an extensive coastal brackish marsh on Pamlico Sound in Hyde County, North Carolina. The refuge is composed of both forested wetlands and open marsh and features thousands of migratory waterfowl during the winter, including...
National Wildlife Refuge
A young black bear looks back on a gravel road surrounded by forest
Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge
Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge is located on the Albemarle Peninsula in eastern North Carolina. The refuge was established in 1984 to protect the rare pocosin wetlands and their associated wildlife. Pocosin wetlands grow on thick layers of peat and have stunted, shrubby vegetation. The...
National Wildlife Refuge
Manteo,NC
A flock of black-and-white shorebirds with upturned beaks rest in perfectly still water
Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge
Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1938 to provide nesting, resting, and wintering habitat for migratory birds, including the greater snow geese and other migratory waterfowl, shorebirds, wading birds, raptors, and neotropical migrants; to provide habitat and protection for...
National Wildlife Refuge
Rodanthe,NC
A flock of hundreds of snow geese taking off from an agricultural field
Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge
Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge conserves a rare type of wetland habitat, known as "pocosin," derived from a Native American word meaning "swamp on a hill." The refuge encompasses vast acres of natural wetlands, including the unique southeastern pocosin peat wetlands, open water on Pungo and...
National Wildlife Refuge
Columbia,NC
A calm river bordered by bare baldcypress trees
Roanoke River National Wildlife Refuge
Roanoke River National Wildlife Refuge, in Bertie County, North Carolina, is named for the Roanoke River, which runs through the refuge. The refuge was established in 1991 to protect the forests in the Roanoke River floodplain, considered to be the largest intact, and least disturbed, bottomland...
National Wildlife Refuge
Windsor,NC
A grassy marsh with open water in the foreground and a pine forest in the background
Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge
Congress established Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge on December 30, 1960, to protect migratory birds and their habitats and conserve endangered and threatened species. The refuge is located on Knotts Island in Currituck County, North Carolina, and includes lands in Virginia Beach, Virginia...
National Wildlife Refuge
Knotts Island,NC
A forest with an open understory, scraggly oak trees, and tall, straight pines
Currituck National Wildlife Refuge
Currituck National Wildlife Refuge was established to preserve, protect and maintain healthy and viable populations of migratory birds, wildlife, fish and plants, including federal and state endangered species and trust species. The refuge restores, enhances and maintains the natural processes and...
National Wildlife Refuge
Knotts Island,NC