The Valentine National Wildlife Refuge is located in the heart of the Sandhills in north-central Nebraska and was established by Congress in 1935 “as a breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife.” The Refuge is home to 270 species of birds, 59 species of mammals, and 22 species of reptiles and amphibians, and is a unique and ecologically important component of the National Wildlife Refuge System. The native grass prairie in the hills, meadows, wetlands, lakes and marshes in the valleys found here provide habitat for a diversity of wildlife.