Middle Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge

Middle Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge was established as an individual refuge on May 31, 2000. The refuge consists of seven divisions:

• Meissner Island Division - 59 acres near Valmeyer, Illinois
• Harlow Island Division - 1,191 acres near Festus, Missouri
• Beaver Island Division - 256 acres near Kaskaskia, Illinois
• Horse Island Division - 2,052 acres near Kaskaskia, Illinois
• Crains Island Division - 641 acres across the river from Chester, Illinois
• Rockwood Island Division - 1,261 acres near Rockwood, Illinois
• Wilkinson Island Division - 2,643 acres near Gorham, Illinois

Middle Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge lands were purchased in response to the great flood of 1993 and are unique in the Great River National Wildlife Refuge complex. The refuge tracts lie within the uncontrolled portion of the Middle Mississippi River, below the confluence with the Missouri River, where river levels are not regulated by the lock and dam system. Water levels may fluctuate greatly in this "open river" section of the Mississippi, and frequent flooding occurs on these lands.

Much of the refuge land had previously been cut off from the floodplain by private levees that protected agricultural lands. Most of the levees were breached by the 1993 flood and have not been repaired. These lands provide access to the floodplain for native fish during high water stages and create a corridor of floodplain forest habitat for migratory birds and resident wildlife. The refuge was designated as an Important Bird Area in 2008.