The Coldwater National Wildlife Refuge is located in northwest Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

, 4 ½ miles south of the town of Crowder

Crowder, Mississippi

Crowder is a town in Panola and Quitman Counties in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The population was 766 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Crowder is located at . Most of the town is in Quitman County with a portion on the east in adjacent Panola County...

. Established in 2000, this small refuge consists of 2069 acres (8.4 km²) within an acquisition boundary of 16000 acres (64.7 km²). The centerpiece of the refuge is 25 old catfish

Catfish

Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...

 ponds ranging in size from 9 to 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) and totaling 495 acres (2 km²). These ponds are intensively managed for migrating waterfowl

Waterfowl

Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....

, shorebirds and wading birds. A majority of the refuge has been reforested in native bottomland hardwood

Hardwood

Hardwood is wood from angiosperm trees . It may also be used for those trees themselves: these are usually broad-leaved; in temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen.Hardwood contrasts with softwood...

 species. Almost the entire refuge is flooded annually during the winter/spring by the Coldwater

Coldwater River (Mississippi)

The Coldwater River is a river which flows for through northwestern Mississippi in the United States. It is a tributary of the Tallahatchie River, and part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, via the Yazoo River....

 and Tallahatchie River

Tallahatchie River

The Tallahatchie River flows from Tippah County, Mississippi to Leflore County, Mississippi, where it joins the Yalobusha River to form the Yazoo River.-History:Tallahatchie is a Choctaw name meaning "rock of waters"....

s. Up to 50,000 migratory waterfowl

Waterfowl

Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....

 winter on the refuge and 34 species of shorebirds have been recorded during spring and fall migration. Peregrine falcon

Peregrine Falcon

The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...

, least tern, black tern

Black Tern

The Black Tern, Chlidonias niger, is a small tern generally found in or near inland water in Europe and North America. As its name suggests, it has predominantly dark plumage.- Description :...

, bald

Bald Eagle

The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...

 and golden eagle

Golden Eagle

The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...

s, and wood stork

Wood Stork

The Wood Stork is a large American wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It was formerly called the "Wood Ibis", though it is not really an ibis.-Appearance:...

have been observed. Due to intensive management, the refuge is critically important as a sanctuary for waterfowl and other neotropical migratory birds. Primarily for these reasons, the refuge is closed to public access