The FWS is seeking public review and comment on the proposed opening or expansion of hunting and/or fishing. The public is invited to review the draft documents, including the draft plan(s), compatibility determination(s) as appropriate, and NEPA compliance documentation. The draft documents are available through the Federal Register docket number: FWS–HQ–NWRS–2026–1223.
The comment period on the proposed hunting and sport fishing regulations across Service-managed lands and waters will stay open for 30-days from May 27 through June 26, 2026. Please submit your comments directly through the Federal Register.
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Wetlands within the Bear River Valley provide excellent habitat for a variety of migratory and resident wildlife species. The area was identified as the number one priority in the Bear River Focus Area Plan for the Inter-Mountain West Joint Venture. The Refuge supports one of the highest densities of nesting waterfowl in Wyoming, species including white-faced ibis, black tern, and numerous other marsh and shorebirds; provides excellent potential for expansion of breeding trumpeter swans; and provides habitat for local resident wildlife such as sage grouse, mule deer, elk, and pronghorn.
Location and Contact Information
Cokeville Meadows National Wildlife Refuge and surrounding lands are part of the ancestral homelands of the Shoshoni tribes. Crow bands frequented the area as well, according to old trapper journals. The Bear River was known in the Goshiute dialect of the Shoshoni language as Ku'i-o-ga, ku'i-o'gwa, or Kwi'o-gwa. (Chamberlin, 1913 -taken from shoshoniproject.utah.edu) The Bear River or Ku'i-o-ga runs through portions of the refuge and supplies most of the water that irrigates the wetlands and wet meadow habitats of the refuge.