DESERT NATIONAL WILDLIFE RANGE
DESERT NATIONAL WILDLIFE RANGE
Welcome to the Desert National Wildlife Refuge Complex home page on the World Wide Web. Check here for current news and updates. The complex consists of four refuges located in southern Nevada: Desert National Wildlife Refuge, Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge, Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge, and the Amargosa Pupfish Station. A wide array of additional information is available to help you learn more about these refuges, their natural resources, and recreational opportunities.
The Desert National Wildlife Refuge was established May 20, 1936, and encompasses 1.5 million acres of the diverse Mojave Desert in southern Nevada. It is the largest National Wildlife Refuge in the lower 48 states. The Refuge contains six major mountain ranges, the highest rising from 2,500-foot valleys to nearly 10,000 feet. Annual rainfall ranges from less than four inches on the valley floors to over fifteen inches on the highest peaks.