Hennepin Marsh South Coastline at Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge

The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge was born of a vision shared by a group of local governments, corporations, and conservation organizations from the United States and Canada. North America’s first International Wildlife Refuge became a reality through Public Law 108-23 in December 2001. The refuge’s habitats will eventually include islands, coastal wetlands, marshes, shoals, and riverfront lands along 42 miles of the lower Detroit River and western Lake Erie in Michigan. The act calls for the Service to establish partnerships with Canada and with local communities and to enter into cooperative land-management agreements with private landowners. The habitats protected and restored by the refuge will provide hospice for some 300 species of migratory birds, including 29 waterfowl species, and 65 fish species. Some 3 million migrating waterfowl naturally follow the western shoreline of Lake Erie, where they stop to rest and feed in the river and in its nearby marshes.