About Us
Jarvis Island National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1974 and is located 1,305 nautical miles south of Honolulu.
On January 6, 2009, the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument was established, which includes Jarvis Island National Wildlife Refuge within its boundaries. On September 25, 2014 the monument was expanded around Jarvis Island out to 200 nautical miles.
The refuge encompasses 429,853 acres, with 1,273 acres being terrestrial and 428,580 acres being submerged.
Jarvis Island borders along an ancient coral reef and massive extinct volcano that emerges from the deep ocean floor of the equatorial Pacific. The equatorial undercurrent pushes nutrient-rich waters up into the sunlit zone, thereby increasing marine productivity that many marine species benefit from. This important phenomenon may be limited only to Howland, Baker, Jarvis Islands, and a few other islands in the Pacific because of their location near the equator. The upwelling is especially strong at Jarvis because of its larger size, supporting soft corals and large schools of plankton-eating fish.
Entry to Jarvis Island is by permit only. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service personnel, scientists, and researchers. Jarvis Island is accessible only by ship.
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 History
- March 14, 1903 – President Theodore Roosevelt implements the first National Wildlife Refuge on Pelican Island, Florida.
- June 27, 1974 - The secretary of the interior designates Jarvis Island and its territorial sea, extending three nautical miles, as a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System to be “administered under the general regulations for the National Wildlife Refuge System published in Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations”(39 FR 27930) .
- January 6, 2009 – The Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument was established, which expanded the protected boundaries of Jarvis Island by 50 nautical miles.
- September 25,2014 - The Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument is expanded with Jarvis being protected out to 200 nautical miles, encompassing 429,853 acres, of which 1,273 acres are terrestrial and 428,580 acres are submerged.
Other Facilities in this Complex
While Jarvis Island National Wildlife Refuge is not a complex, it does fall within the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. The monument incorporates more than 490,000 square miles within its boundaries, which extend 50 nautical miles from Howland and Baker Island, Kingman Reef, and Palmyra Atoll, and out to 200 nautical miles around Jarvis Islands, and Johnston and Wake Atolls.