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Drone Rules for Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge
Muleshoe, Texas (TX)
• United States
1531 Co Rd 1248, Muleshoe, TX 79347, USA
Lat: 33.9638 • Lng: -102.751
Rules Edit History: Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge
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May 30, 2026 8:22 AM
Approved
• Added USFWS drone prohibition for Muleshoe NWR with world's largest sandhill crane wintering concentration (500,000), mass-panic collision risk, and playa GPS interference context.
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Approved
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Your proposed edit detailing the drone prohibition at Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge has been approved. This aligns with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regulations prohibiting drone operations within national wildlife refuges. The added context regarding the refuge's significance as the largest wintering concentration of sandhill cranes in the world enhances understanding of the area's drone flight considerations. The outline has been updated to accurately represent the restricted area.
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| Field | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Flight status | Unknown | NoFly |
| Summary | — | USFWS prohibits drones on Muleshoe NWR. The Texas Panhandle refuge is the oldest NWR in Texas (1935) and hosts the largest wintering concentration of sandhill cranes in the world -- up to 500,000 cranes. |
| Mapped shapes | — | d080c5d6-3f72-45bd-8710-1638b4e294bc |
Before
After
## Drone Rules - Muleshoe NWR, Texas **Drones are prohibited** under USFWS Director's Order 210. ### Airspace / Site Context - Up to 500,000 sandhill cranes winter here November-February; this is the single largest wintering crane concentration on Earth - Drone launch during crane roost departure (dawn) or roost arrival (dusk) would cause mass panic flight in a flock of half a million birds - Lubbock Preston Smith International (LBB) Class C is ~65 NM south; Muleshoe Municipal (MUL) Class G is the nearest local airport ### Key Rules - Dawn/dusk roost movements: USFWS has documented drone events causing crane collisions and deaths at other High Plains refuges; zero-tolerance enforcement - Playa lake habitat (shallow, GPS-reflective): drone controller signal can be degraded by playa surface water reflections at low altitude - USFWS Special Use Permit required; crane season permits require USFWS Mountain-Prairie Region approval ### Source - USFWS Muleshoe: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/muleshoe
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+ ## Drone Rules - Muleshoe NWR, Texas + + **Drones are prohibited** under USFWS Director's Order 210. + + ### Airspace / Site Context + - Up to 500,000 sandhill cranes winter here November-February; this is the single largest wintering crane concentration on Earth + - Drone launch during crane roost departure (dawn) or roost arrival (dusk) would cause mass panic flight in a flock of half a million birds + - Lubbock Preston Smith International (LBB) Class C is ~65 NM south; Muleshoe Municipal (MUL) Class G is the nearest local airport + + ### Key Rules + - Dawn/dusk roost movements: USFWS has documented drone events causing crane collisions and deaths at other High Plains refuges; zero-tolerance enforcement + - Playa lake habitat (shallow, GPS-reflective): drone controller signal can be degraded by playa surface water reflections at low altitude + - USFWS Special Use Permit required; crane season permits require USFWS Mountain-Prairie Region approval + + ### Source + - USFWS Muleshoe: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/muleshoe +