The nation's 54th national wildlife refuge - Glacial Ridge Refuge in northwest Minnesota - was officially created on October 12, 2004. Launched with the donation of a 2,000 acre parcel by the Nature Conservancy, the refuge will eventually cover 35,000 acres, becoming th largest tall grass prairie and wetland restoration project in the United States. This refuge will become a major waterfowl breeding and nesting area. It will provide critical habitat for declining grassland birds, greater prairie chickens, sandhill cranes, as well as the endangered western prairie fringed orchid, among other species.