Birds of Merritt Island NWR Gallery
The refuge traces its beginnings to the development of the nation’s Space Program. In 1962, NASA acquired 140,000 acres of land, water, and marshes adjacent to Cape Canaveral to establish the John F. Kennedy Space Center. NASA built a launch complex and other space-related facilities, but development of most of the area was not necessary. In 1963 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service signed an agreement to establish the refuge and in 1975 a second agreement established Canaveral National Seashore. Today, the Department of Interior manages most of the unused portions of the Kennedy Space Center as a National Wildlife Refuge and National Seashore.
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Lesser Yellowlegs
In the late 19th Century this charming little bird was heavily hunted because if one of its fellows was shot the rest of the flock would hover over it and look. Thankfully hunting of this species is now outlawed.
YellowlegsFloridaLesser YellowlegsMerritt Islandbirdswater_birdswildlife