Description from National Wildlife Refuge web page  http://greatmeadows.fws.gov

Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge is composed of valuable freshwater wetlands along 12 miles of the Concord and Sudbury rivers. The refuge, located 20 miles west of Boston, consists of two units of land bordering seven historically significant towns - Billerica, Bedford, Carlisle, Concord, Lincoln, Sudbury, and Wayland. Minute Man National Historical Park and Thoreau's Walden Pond are located nearby.
The refuge provides resting and feeding habitat for waterfowl, wading birds, and other migratory species. Several waterfowl species, including wood ducks, black ducks, and mallards, use the refuge's freshwater wetlands for nesting, resting and feeding, especially the Concord Unit's tow 100-acre impoundments. The Blandings turtle, rare in Massachusetts, also frequents refuge marshes. Upland areas support a variety of raptors and upland birds. notably woodcock and pheasant, and songbirds.

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