Local refuge opens to the public today

Margaret Slayton, St. Joseph News-Press, Mo.
·2 min read

Mar. 6—The gates at Swan Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Sumner, Missouri, are open again to the public today.

Steve Whitson, refuge manager, said the area is closed annually from late October to the first Saturday of March to allow for undisturbed habitat for migrating and wintering waterfowl.

He said the refuge opens at 6 a.m. and there are several outdoor public use opportunities, including fishing, bird watching and hiking.

Silver Lake is 2,000 acres and currently is open to fishing. The auto tour route is open to vehicles, and the trails are open to foot traffic.

In addition, there is a nature trail by the visitor center with an overlook and scopes near the Swan Lake marsh. The refuge allows antler shed hunting and mushroom and berry picking for personal use.

Due to COVID restrictions, the visitor center is closed with only the main office open at limited capacity.

Whitson said there are hundreds of trumpeter swans on the refuge and snow goose numbers can reach in the hundreds of thousands.

He said March and early April are good times to view different species of waterfowl that are migrating back north for the summer. During the early morning or late evening, a drive through the refuge is an ideal time to see whitetail deer.

Mid-April through May provides viewing opportunities in habitat mudflat areas for the many species of shorebirds that stop over on their migration routes.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began purchasing the 10,795 acres in 1937. Following purchase of the land, the Civilian Conservation Corps began work on the refuge to create wetlands, to construct roads and buildings and to initiate the refuge farming program.

Currently, the refuge is managed for migratory birds including waterfowl, geese and shorebirds. It also provides habitat for many neotropical migrating species of birds.

Canada geese were first observed on the refuge in the early 1940s and numbers increased gradually to peak populations of 150,000 to 200,000 annually during the early 1970s. Today, Canada geese are commonly seen on the refuge.

For more information, contact Whitson by phone at 660-973-6349.

Margaret Slayton can be reached at margaret.slayton@newspressnow.com.