The Environment News Service reports that Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced in Albuquerque that 570 acres have been acquired to establish a national wildlife refuge along the Rio Grande south of Albuquerque, which will make it New Mexico’s first urban refuge.
The current owners of the former Price’s Dairy Farm were interested in [...]

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has posted an interesting video about recovery efforts for the threatened Western snowy plover. Currently, only eight locations in Oregon support nesting Western snowy plovers, a 72 percent reduction in active breeding locations. The primary cause of decline is loss and degradation of habitat.
 

KRDO.com is reporting that Colorado Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet sent a letter to Director Dan Ashe of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service asking for a “meeting with stakeholders to explore potential solutions to conserving the refuge’s natural resources” at Baca National Wildlife Refuge.
Baca NWR, which is close to the Great Sand Dunes [...]

Today is the 4th anniversary of the founding of this blog — Refuge Watch.
The National Wildlife Refuge System has never faced threats to its existence and its health as great as it does now. The Refuge System is a part of the federal government that is run well, run cheaply considering its size, and run [...]

“This American Land” is an original new series on PBS that helps educate viewers about our natural heritage: America’s landscapes, waters and wildlife. The show provides stories on conservation, science, and outdoor adventure, which are produced by veteran environmental journalists.
Upcoming episode titles include:

Whitewater, Wading Birds, Wildlife Brigades
Rescuing Amphibians, Yellowstone Snowmobiles, Saltwater Fishing
Florida Panthers, Smoky Mountains, [...]

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that efforts are underway to establish a second population of the endangered Nihoa Millerbird on Laysan Island within the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument to prevent the bird’s extinction. Nihoa and Laysan Islands are part of the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge, which comprise the majority of the atolls [...]

The Center for Biological Diversity criticized an analysis by the Department of Homeland Security that proposes tripling the size of the Border Patrol’s base in the desert.

“In its slipshod analysis of the impacts of tripling the size of its forward operating base near Organ Pipe National Monument and Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, Homeland Security [...]

CNN Money recently posted a video highlighting the budget attack that the House GOP has mounted against the National Wildlife Refuge System in their current appropriations bill. If enacted, H.R. 2584 would:

Completely close or eliminate major programs at 128 National Wildlife Refuges
Eliminate 275 Refuge Staff
Eliminate virtually any new land acquisitions or conservation easements under the [...]