White River National Wildlife Refuge
| White River National Wildlife Refuge | |
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IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
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 Map of the United States
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| Location | Arkansas, United States |
| Nearest city | De Witt, Arkansas |
| Coordinates | 34°21′N 91°06′W / 34.350°N 91.100°WCoordinates: 34°21′N 91°06′W / 34.350°N 91.100°W |
| Area | 160,756 acres (650.56 km2) |
| Established | 1935 |
| Governing body | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |
| Website | White River NWR |
| Designated | November 21, 1989 |
The White River National Wildlife Refuge (officially Dale Bumpers White River National Wildlife Refuge) is a 160,756 acres (650.56 km2) wildlife refuge located in Desha, Monroe, Phillips, and Arkansas counties in the U.S. state of Arkansas. The refuge is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. White River NWR borders on Cache River National Wildlife Refuge at its northern boundary.
In 2013, the FWS proposed the gradual expansion of the refuge up to a maximum of 297,806 acres (120,518 ha).
White River National Wildlife Refuge was created in 1935. The refuge is 3 to 10 miles (4.8 to 16.1 km) wide and encompassing 90 miles (140 km) of the lower 100 miles (160 km) of the White River. It also includes 3 miles (4.8 km) of the Arkansas Post Canal which is part of the Army Corps of Engineers' McClellan-Kerr Navigation System on the Arkansas River.
This refuge has the largest concentration of wintering mallard ducks in the Mississippi Flyway. It also has large concentrations of snow and Canada geese. This refuge is home to four active bald eagle nests and a black bear population. Black bears have increased in numbers from about 25 in the 1940s to more than 300. It is believed by some to host one of the last populations of the ivory-billed woodpecker, a bird considered extinct or nearly so.
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