Lostwood National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) lies in the heart of the Missouri Coteau region, a dead ice moraine feature. Topography includes rolling to steep hills in mid-grass prairie, dotted with more than 4,100 wetlands and small clumps of aspens. Lostwood NWR is the largest contiguous block of native grassland managed by the National Wildlife Refuge System in the prairie pothole region. The Refuge also contains a 5,577 acre Wilderness Area established in 1975. <P>Through the aggressive use of prescribed burning and grazing to fight encroachment of exotic plants and woody vegetation, the mixed grass community is being restored and maintained. Dominant vegetation is western snowberry, needle grasses, wheat grasses, gramas, and plains muhly. <P>The Refuge provides breeding habitat for the Great Plains population of the threatened piping plover on the shores of its alkaline lakes. Many rare songbirds such as the Baird's sparrow are benefitting from the grassland management programs. <P>Lostwood NWR is an important birding stop for an increasing number of international and out-of-state birders looking for grassland species, many of which are not easily found elsewhere. <P>