St. Catherine Creek National Wildlife Refuge in southwest Mississippi, south of Natchez, protects a floodplain landscape bounded by the Mississippi River, loess bluffs, and the Homochitto River. Established in January 1990 to preserve, improve, and create habitat for waterfowl, it has been intensively managed to provide winter habitat and resting areas for birds using the Lower Mississippi River Valley. Covering nearly 26,000 acres, with a potential size of 34,256 acres, it includes open water, cleared batture land, cypress swamps, and hardwood forest. These varied habitats support more than 250 bird species and make the refuge a major conservation area in a rich river ecosystem.