Explore Union Slough NWR

untion slough

Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1938 with a purpose shared by most National Wildlife refuges -- to provide a refuge and breeding ground for waterfowl and other migratory birds. However, protecting and managing Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge for this purpose has resulted in the protection of an entire habitat, the prairie pothole region.

What was once the bottom and coastal area of an inland sea is today surrounded by a sea of corn and soybeans. In the audio segments below, Iowa Academy of Science members will share how that inland sea transformed into the prairie pothole region, what evidence has been found about the earliest humans to live in the region, the evolution of conservation efforts at Union Slough NWR and how the wildlife of Union Slough NWR are connected to each other and to us. We recommend you burn these segments onto a CD and listen to them in your car as you drive the Union Slough auto tour route.

The Geologic past of Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge (7:04)

Archeological Discoveries at Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge (4:38)

Human History at Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge (6:01)

Conservation at Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge (5:06)

Wildlife at Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge (7:43)

Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge All Tracks (26:41)

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Bedrock Geology of Union Slough

Bedrock Geologic Map of Iowa, 1998. Natural Resources, Department

Three Ways to Listen

There are several ways to listen to this audio series:

	play the audio files through the player within the website

	click on the download button to the right of each audio file to download that track in mp3 format

	click on the iTunes or RSS link to add the Iowa Academy of Science's National Wildlife Refuge Audio Series to you iTunes or Windows Media Library

More on Union Slough

Union Slough NWR Homepage

Friends of Union Slough NWR

USGS Bird Checklist for Union Slough

Weather Forecast for Union Slough NWR and Surrounding Area

Quotes from Union Slough

"Immediately above these rocks, and underlying all of the Union Slough area, are Cretaceous-aged Dakota Formation rocks. This was the age of the dinosaurs when the western half of what was to become Iowa was located near the eastern margin an expanding inland sea."

-Mark Anderson

"This mixed ecosystem of tall grass prairie and wetlands was home to ducks, geese, shorebirds, songbirds, prairie chickens, buffalo, beaver, muskrats and many other animal species."

-Jane Shuttleworth

"If a duck makes the wrong
grunt whistle, the courtship stops thus preventing the exchange of gametes between members of different species."

-Rick Lampe