What We Do
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conserves and monitors plants and animals, manages and restores habitat, and provides outdoor recreation for the public at the nation’s more than 550 National Wildlife Refuges.
The coastal Refuges offer unique opportunities to study plants and animals in pristine or relatively undisturbed habitats. These field studies seek to answer questions ranging from the needs of a single species to how an entire ecosystem functions.
Management and Conservation
Refuges deploy a host of scientifically sound management tools to address biological challenges. These tools span active water management to wilderness character monitoring, all aimed at ensuring a balanced conservation approach to benefit both wildlife and people.
Comprehensive Conservation Plan
In accordance with the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act and the Wilderness Act, a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) was finalized for 2009 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex.
The purpose of the CCP is to map a vision of the refuges' future desired conditions, addressing issues of land protection, public use, types of habitat to be provided, partnership opportunities, and the management actions needed to achieve this vision. This CCP specifies a management direction for the Refuge for 15 years.
Our Projects and Research
A number of offshore rocks and islands within Oregon Islands NWR are research sites, prized for their relatively undisturbed habitat and wildlife. Many of these sites see virtually zero human interference outside of specially-trained researchers—and even then, the disturbance is intermittent and as minimal as possible. Seabird monitoring via helicopter and plane, on-the-ground monitoring of nests and chicks, plant surveys, and invasive predator removal are all projects conducted in the past or currently underway at this Refuge.
Biological Investigations
Many land management objectives occur at scales that can be challenging to grasp from ground level. A good aerial photograph is worth thousands of words when conveying the big picture perspective of how all the pieces of a landscape fit together.
How do you count 50,000 tightly-packed Common Murres on an inaccessible offshore rock without disturbing them? Surveying birds from high altitude using aerial photographs is often the only accurate, low-impact way to do it. And when you have 320 miles of coastline to survey, it's the only efficient option.
The coastal refuges offer unique opportunities to study plants and animals in pristine or relatively undisturbed habitats. These field studies seek to answer questions ranging from the needs of a single species to how an entire ecosystem functions.
Biologists conduct innovative research in many coastal habitats. Oregon Islands NWR currently hosts the only Leach's Storm-petrel research on the U.S. west coast. Ground-breaking fisheries research is being conducted on Siletz Bay, Nestucca Bay, and Bandon Marsh Refuges. Native plant communities on coastal refuges provide models for habitat restoration elsewhere on the Pacific coast.
Law Enforcement
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service law enforcement officers have a wide variety of duties and responsibilities. Officers help visitors understand and obey wildlife protection laws. They work closely with state and local government offices to enforce federal, state and refuge hunting regulations that protect migratory birds and other game species from illegal take and preserve legitimate hunting opportunities.
Laws and Regulations
There are a number of federal laws and regulations that guide the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s efforts and goals for our National Wildlife Refuges.