Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
Newburyport, MA 01950
Phone:978-465-5753
Web: www.fws.gov/northeast/parkerriver
Established: 1942.
Location:35 miles north of Boston, Massachusetts.
Facilities:Visitor contact station, viewing sites, trails (é), beach, boat ramp, auto tour route.
Activities:Fishing, shelling, hunting, bicycling, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, educational programs.
Special Features:The refuge supports varied and abundant populatins of resident and migratory wildlife including more than 300 species of birds as well as mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and plants.
Habitats: 4,662 acres of sandy beach and dune, shrub/thicket, bog, swamp, freshwater marsh, salt marsh and associated creek, river, mud flat, and salt panne.
Access: Open from dawn to dusk. Portions of beach are closed April through July.
Wild life: American woodcock, piper plover, red-winged blackbird, osprey, purple martin, mourning cloak butterflies, pearl crescent butterflies, spring azure butterflies, white-tailed deer, coyote, hooded arctic seals, and harbor seals.
See other parks in Massachusetts.