Bayou Teche National Wildlife Refuge

Located in the heart of the “Cajun Coast,” Bayou Teche National Wildlife Refuge, established in 2001, sits along Bayou Teche, an ancient channel of the Mississippi River. The refuge consists of mostly swamp located behind the natural levees of the bayou between Franklin, Centerville, and Garden City, LA. Our primary objective at the refuge is to support the Louisiana black bear by restoring and managing bottomland hardwood forests, cypress-tupelo swamps, bayous, and marshes to ensure high quality, diverse habitat. Many other plants and animals benefit from conservation of these habitats. The refuge's location close to the Gulf of America makes it an important landscape for neotropical songbirds during seasonal migrations between the northern and southern hemispheres. The refuge is the homeland of the Chitimacha Tribe.