Guam National Wildlife Refuge
| Guam National Wildlife Refuge | |
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IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
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The beach off Ritidian Point
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 Ritidian Point Unit
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| Location | Dededo / Yigo, Guam, United States |
| Nearest city | Dededo, Guam / Yigo, Guam |
| Coordinates | 13°39′2″N 144°51′38″E / 13.65056°N 144.86056°ECoordinates: 13°39′2″N 144°51′38″E / 13.65056°N 144.86056°E |
| Area | 23,659 acres (95.74 km2) total 23,288 acres (94.24 km2) land 371 acres (1.50 km2) reefs and ocean |
| Established | 1993 |
| Visitors | 90,000 |
| Governing body | Department of Defense 22,456 acres (90.88 km2); Fish and Wildlife Service 1,203 acres (4.87 km2) |
| Website | Guam National Wildlife Refuge |
The Guam National Wildlife Refuge protects Ritidian Point and unused military land in the United States territory of Guam. The focus of much of the efforts involves the suppression of invasive exotics to protect endemic species. The reserve consists of eight mostly non-contiguous units.
Ritidian Point is at the far northern point of Guam and is the only unit open to the public. The Navy used the area as a high-security communications station throughout the Cold War and donated the 1,203 acres (4.87 km2) of land to the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1993. Guam's Delegate to Congress at that time, Robert A. Underwood, objected to the transfer as a violation of indigenous Chamorro land rights for not returning the property to the pre-military owners. Sailors from the USS Frank Cable continued the Navy connection by volunteering and creating a nature path for visitors. The Ritidian Unit offices and beaches close to the public at 4 PM every day. They are also closed any time the Guam Homeland Security Office of Civil Defense issues a tropical cyclone condition of readiness 3, 2, or 1. Additionally, the beaches are closed to the public during tropical storm warnings issued by the National Weather Service.
Ritidian Point contains the archaeological site of a pre-Magellan Chamorro village, a former barrier reef that is now a 500-foot limestone cliff and beaches where threatened green sea turtles nest. This area is the only designated critical habitat in Guam because it is home to some of the last confirmed populations of the Mariana fruit bat, Guam kingfisher, Mariana common moorhen and Mariana crow. The accidental introduction of the brown tree snake is considered the primary cause for the decline of native Guam bird species and the Reserve uses specially trained dogs to hunt them.
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