About Us

Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge is an extensive coastal marsh which includes the Swanquarter National Wilderness Area. The refuge hosts large concentrations of diving ducks (lesser scaups, redheads, buffleheads, canvasbacks, and surf scoters), sea ducks, American black ducks, wading birds and shorebirds, especially during the winter. Wading bird rookeries, osprey nesting and colonial nesting birds occur. Refuge habitats consist of irregularly flooded brackish marsh (13,200 acres) and forested wetlands (3,200 acres). The refuge provides habitat for American alligators and bald eagles as well as protection for migratory waterfowl and other birds. The refuge is administered by Mattamuskeet NWR.

Our Mission

Vision

Swanquarter NWR functions as a vital part of the Refuge System and is an important wintering area for migratory birds, such as ducks, geese, and swans, on the Atlantic flyway. The refuge maintains breeding habitat for a variety of migratory birds. The refuge protects and enhances a healthy brackish marsh ecosystem and an upland forest ecosystem, and maintains the natural and primitive character of the large wilderness area wilderness area
Wilderness areas are places untamed by humans. The Wilderness Act of 1964 allows Congress to designate wilderness areas for protection to ensure that America's pristine wild lands will not disappear. Wilderness areas can be part of national wildlife refuges, national parks, national forests or public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

Learn more about wilderness area . It provides habitat for threatened and endangered animals, particularly the red-cockaded woodpecker, red wolf, and American alligator.

Visitors enjoy quality recreation opportunities such as fishing by boat or from the Bell Island pier, crabbing, waterfowl and deer hunting, and wildlife observation and photography. Visitors understand and appreciate the significance of the north Pamlico Sound ecosystems and the importance of refuge management activities.

The refuge staff works with partners and volunteers to achieve the refuge’s goals. Essential scientific information is garnered through research conducted at Swanquarter NWR in cooperation with government agencies, non-governmental agencies, universities, and others.

Refuge Purpose

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 purpose of Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge, as reflected in the refuge’s authorizing legislation, is to protect and conserve migratory birds, and other wildlife resources through the protection of wetlands, in accordance with the following laws:

“... for use as an inviolate sanctuary, or for any other management purpose, for migratory birds.” 16 U.S.C. ¤ 715d (Migratory Bird Conservation Act of 1929)

Other Facilities in this Complex

The refuge is managed as part of the Coastal North Carolina National Wildlife Refuge 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
An open marsh landscape with bands of different species of grasses and rushes, colored bright green, brown, and gray
Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge
Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1964 and features an extensive, relatively undisturbed coastal marsh, along with pocosin and woodland habitat. The marsh and surrounding waters provide wintering habitat for thousands of ducks and nesting habitat for colonial waterbirds and...
National Wildlife Refuge
Cedar Island,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 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 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