Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge is a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the world's premiere system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife and plants...

 on Oregon's coast

Oregon Coast

The Oregon Coast is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It runs generally north-south along the Pacific Ocean, forming the western border of the state; the region is bounded to the east by the Oregon Coast Range. The Oregon Coast stretches approximately from the Columbia River in the north to...

. It is one of six National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) comprising the Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex

Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex

The Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex consists of six National Wildlife Refuges along the Oregon Coast. It provides wilderness protection to thousands of small islands, rocks, reefs, headlands, marshes, and bays totaling 371 acres spanning 320 miles of Oregon's coastline...

. The refuge consists of several discontinuous tracts north and south of the Siletz River

Siletz River

The Siletz River flows about to the Pacific Ocean through coastal mountains in the U.S. state of Oregon. Formed by the confluence of its north and south forks near Valsetz in Polk County, it winds through the Central Oregon Coast Range. The river, draining a watershed of , empties into Siletz Bay,...

 where it enters Siletz Bay south of Lincoln City

Lincoln City, Oregon

Lincoln City is a city in Lincoln County, Oregon, United States. It is named after the county. The population was 7,930 at the 2010 census.- History :...

. It is closed to public use, except for viewing from outside the refuge boundaries and during special events.

Siletz Bay NWR was established in 1991 primarily to return salt marsh

Salt marsh

A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...

 to its natural state. Formerly it had been diked and ditched to create pasture for dairy cows. One segment of the refuge near Millport Slough, an arm of the lower Siletz River, consists of a 100 acres (40.5 ha) tidal marsh restored by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service

United States Fish and Wildlife Service

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...

, Ducks Unlimited

Ducks Unlimited

Ducks Unlimited is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and associated upland habitats for waterfowl, other wildlife, and people. It currently has approximately 780,000 members, mostly in the United States and Canada.-Introduction:Ducks Unlimited was...

, and the Confederated Tribes of Siletz

Confederated Tribes of Siletz

The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians in the United States is a federally recognized confederation of 27 Native American tribal bands that once inhabited a range from northern California to southwest Washington.-Tribes:...

. Together they breached 220 feet (67.1 m) of dikes, removed dikes totaling 9300 feet (2,834.6 m), filled 1200 feet (365.8 m) of ditches, and added woody debris to improve fish habitat. Salt-starched skeleton trees are visible along both sides of U.S. Route 101

U.S. Route 101

U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101, is an important north–south U.S. highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States...

 (which runs through the refuge) from the time when the salt marsh was diked. Red-tailed Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...

s and Bald Eagle

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...

s are often visible roosting on these snags. Abundant Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron

The Great Blue Heron is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America as well as the West Indies and the Galápagos Islands. It is a rare vagrant to Europe, with records from Spain, the Azores and England...

 and Great Egret

Great Egret

The Great Egret , also known as the Great White Egret or Common Egret, White Heron, or Great White Heron, is a large, widely-distributed egret. Distributed across most of the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world, in southern Europe it is rather localized...

live nearby.