3. Block Island National Wildlife Refuge

The Block Island National Wildlife Refuge constitutes 134 acres of the northern end of the Block Island. In fact, 40% of the island is set aside for conservation. The National Wildlife Refuge here was first set up in 1973, with an initial 28 acres transferred over by the U.S. Coast Guard. According to the official website, the refuge is home to over 70 species of migratory songbirds, which make a stop on Block Island during the annual migration. The refuge also hosts the largest gull colony in the state of Rhode Island.

According to the brochure from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service about Rhode Island National Wildlife Refuges, “Hundreds of small ponds and fruit-bearing shrubs provide essential water and food for more than 250 species of birds who come to rest there. Secondly, Block Island’s international fame is that it is home to 15 rare or endangered species…Block Island is one of only two places in the world where barn owls nest in sea cliffs rather than in man-made structures or inland cliffs.”