USFWS · Florida

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge is a 140,000-acre (57,000 ha) U.S. National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) on the Atlantic coast of Florida's largest barrier island. NASA's Kennedy Space Center and visitor complex are also situated on the island and NASA can restrict access to the refuge based on its operational needs.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Wildlife Refuge129,991 acresUSFWSFL2 campgrounds within 10 mi
Official page at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ↗
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge
Photo by Sudhir Viswarajan;, licensed CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons.

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Wildlife Refuge
Managed byU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
StateFlorida
Size129,991 acres
FWS regionRegion 4
Center point28.63° N, 80.70° W
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 23)

Boundary map

2 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground

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

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge60°70°80°90°January: 2.28 inches of precipitationFebruary: 2.36 inches of precipitationMarch: 3.25 inches of precipitationApril: 2.01 inches of precipitationMay: 2.91 inches of precipitationJune: 6.90 inches of precipitationJuly: 5.76 inches of precipitationAugust: 6.01 inches of precipitationSeptember: 7.20 inches of precipitationOctober: 5.21 inches of precipitationNovember: 2.50 inches of precipitationDecember: 2.20 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 60.1°F averageFebruary: 62.4°F averageMarch: 65.2°F averageApril: 70.0°F averageMay: 74.8°F averageJune: 79.0°F averageJuly: 80.6°F averageAugust: 81.2°F averageSeptember: 79.5°F averageOctober: 74.7°F averageNovember: 68.1°F averageDecember: 63.4°F average0 in2 in4 in6 in8 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Titusville 7 E, 1 mile from the center point at 3 feet, station USW00092821 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 49 inches a year.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

None of the 2 federal campgrounds within ten miles sit inside the boundary. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

NPS · 2.3 mi
Middle Dredge Campsite
First-comeFL
NPS · 6 mi
Canaveral National Seashore Permits
Reservable14 sites

Most refuges do not allow overnight camping. The campgrounds listed are outside the refuge.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Seashore · Adjacent
Canaveral National Seashore
National Register listings within 15 miles · 32 in all · Register Atlas

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

Guidebooks for Florida

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Florida Lighthouse Trail
    Thomas W. Taylor and Chris Belcher, 2020
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Moon South Florida & the Keys Road Trip
    Jason Ferguson, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Best Tent Camping: Florida
    Johnny Molloy, 2016
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge?

129,991 acres.

Source: How acreage is computed

Who manages Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

What state is Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in?

Florida.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge?

The refuge page says whether camping is allowed here. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge?

A point inside the boundary is at 28.633° N, 80.703° W. Canaveral National Seashore is adjacent. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Which national parks are near Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge?

Canaveral National Seashore (adjacent). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge?

The National Register has 32 listings within 15 miles, including Florida Power and Light Company Ice Plant and Press Site--Clock and Flag Pole.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundary layer.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Acreage: geodesic area of the published polygon. The agency’s official acreage can differ where the boundary includes water, easements or inholdings.
  • Photograph: the image Wikidata records for this refuge (Q6820354), the item linked to its Wikipedia article. Author and license come from the file page on Wikimedia Commons.
  • Description: Merritt Island 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.