The Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge and Management Area, established in 1994, is a collection of wildlife refuges and habitats situated along the

Patoka River The Patoka River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 19, 2011 tributary of the Wabash River in southwestern Indiana in the United States. It drains a largely rural ...

in Gibson and

Pike Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to: Fish * Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus'' * Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes * ''Esox'', genus of ...

counties in

southwestern Indiana Southwestern Indiana is an 11-county region of southern Indiana, United States located at the southernmost and westernmost part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the region's combined population is 474,251. Evansville, Indiana's third-larges ...

. It consists mostly of the main body refuge along nearly of the river's course from just north of

Francisco, Indiana Francisco is the fifth largest town and seventh largest community in Gibson County, Indiana, United States. A town in Center Township, the population was 469 at the 2010 census and was founded in 1851. Local tradition says the town was named fo ...

, to just west of Velpen, Indiana. Other areas include the Cane Ridge Wildlife Management Area managed by

Duke Energy Duke Energy Corporation is an American electric power and natural gas holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company ranked as the 141st largest company in the United States in 2024 – its highest-ever placement on the ...

and located immediately south of Gibson Lake and the

Gibson Generating Station The Gibson Generating Station is a coal-burning power plant located at the northernmost end of Montgomery Township, Gibson County, Indiana, United States. It is close to the Wabash River, southeast of Mount Carmel, Illinois, south of the mou ...

in northwestern Gibson County, east of the main body. The refuge is authorized for . As of 2010, are owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Many species of birds nest or spend the winter in these areas, including the

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...

and endangered

least tern The least tern (''Sternula antillarum'') is a species of tern that breeds in North America and locally in northern South America. It is closely related to, and was formerly often considered conspecific with, the little tern of the Old World. Oth ...

. In 2012, tier 1 of the

Interstate 69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of eight unconnected segments. The longest segment runs from Evansville, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, and includ ...

Project was built through this area immediately west of Oakland City in the strip long been set aside when the original Interstate was built, using a bridge to lessen the environmental impact. Originally Interstate 69 was to go along a route similar to the current construction route. This has prompted some disturbances by the group

Earth First! Earth First! is a radical environmentalism, radical Environmental movement, environmental advocacy group that originated in the Southwestern United States. It was founded in 1980 by Dave Foreman, Mike Roselle, Howie Wolke, Bart Koehler, and Ron K ...

, including "evicting" the project offices in Oakland City.Earth First! Journal - NAFTA Superhighway, by Sprout

References

External links

Official site
Important Bird Areas of the United States National Wildlife Refuges in Indiana Protected areas of Gibson County, Indiana Protected areas of Pike County, Indiana {{PikeCountyIN-geo-stub

See also

References

External links