USFWS · National wildlife refuge · Arizona

Kofa National Wildlife Refuge

The Kofa National Wildlife Refuge is located in Arizona in the southwestern United States, northeast of Yuma and southeast of Quartzsite. The refuge, established in 1939 to protect desert bighorn sheep, encompasses over 665,400 acres (2,693 km2) of the Yuma Desert region of the Sonoran Desert. Broad, gently sloping foothills as well as the sharp, needlepoint peaks of the Kofa Mountains are found in the rugged refuge. The small, widely scattered waterholes attract a surprising number of water birds for a desert area. A wide variety of plant life is also found throughout the refuge. Kofa Wilderness takes up 547,719 acres of the refuge, making it the second largest wilderness area in Arizona.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Wildlife Refuge664,626 acresUSFWSAZ
Official page at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Wildlife Refuge
Managed byU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
StateArizona
Size664,626 acres (computed from the boundary polygon)
FWS regionRegion 2
Center point33.2534, -113.9901
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 29)

Boundary map

1 outline

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Register listings within 15 miles · 3 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Kofa National Wildlife Refuge?

664,626 acres, measured from the published boundary polygon. The agency’s own figure can differ where the boundary includes water or inholdings.

Source: How acreage is computed

Who manages Kofa National Wildlife Refuge?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

What state is Kofa National Wildlife Refuge in?

Arizona.

Source: How states are assigned

How do I get to Kofa National Wildlife Refuge?

A point inside the boundary is at 33.253, -113.990. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

How dark is the night sky at Kofa National Wildlife Refuge?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 29 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, very dark ground, a faint glow at most.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Are there historic places near Kofa National Wildlife Refuge?

3 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Hi Jolly Monument and Mohawk Valley School.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundary layer.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Acreage: geodesic area of the published polygon. The agency’s official acreage can differ where the boundary includes water, easements or inholdings.
  • Description: Kofa National Wildlife Refuge on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.