Passport Magazine ALASKA ISSUES WETLANDS ENDANGERED SPECIES Alaska, Hawaii and Guam Pacific region Central region Mississippi region Atlantic region Atlantic Region
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The National Wildlife Refuge System embraces more than 500 units on 92 million acres (37 million hectares) scattered across 50 states and several overseas territories. It is larger than the U.S. National Park System and just as spectacular in many ways, yet it remains one of the least understood and appreciated segments of the public domain. Over the years, Congress has allowed so many different uses of these sanctuaries—grazing, farming, logging, recreational driving—that critics fear some parts of the system have become too public. For the October NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC Douglas H. Chadwick and photographer Joel Sartore looped through what one refuge manager calls “America’s best kept secret.”
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SITE AT A GLANCE
ISSUES:  What’s a refuge for? Suddenly it’s a real question.

            | Refuge on the range | Key deer dilemma |
            | Bombs and bighorn | Water quality |

WETLANDS:  What is a wetland?

            | Explore a saltwater marsh | What is a bog? |
            | What is a prairie pothole? | What is a riverine bottomland? |
            | What is a cypress dome? |

ENDANGERED SPECIES:  A new National Geographic book

            | Florida panther | California condor |
            | Vernal pool tadpole shrimp | Red wolf |

ALASKA:  A treasure of wilderness

            | A vast laboratory | A way of life | A space to roam |

LISTING:  U.S. national wildlife refuges accessible to the public

            | Atlantic | Mississippi | Central (Rocky Mountain) |
            | Pacific | Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam |

           © 1996 National Geographic Society. All rights reserved.