Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP)
Tybee NWR was established on May 9, 1938 as a breeding area for migratory birds and other wildlife. The majority of the 100-acre refuge is covered with sand deposits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' dredging activities in the Savannah River. The more stable portions of the island are densely covered with such woody species as eastern red cedar, wax myrtle, and groundsel. Saltwater marsh borders parts of the island. At low tide the shoreline provides a resting and feeding place for many species of migratory birds.
The refuge is located in the mouth of the Savannah River, adjacent to the Georgia state line and directly opposite Fort Pulaski National Monument which is 12 miles east of Savannah on U.S. Highway 80. Tybee NWR is closed to public use.
Tybee NWR is one of seven refuges administered by the Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex. This chain of national wildlife refuges extends from Pinckney Island NWR near Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, to Wolf Island NWR near Darien, Georgia. Between these lie Savannah (the largest unit in the complex), Wassaw, Tybee, Harris Neck, and Blackbeard Island refuges. Together they span a 100-mile coastline and total 56,949 acres. The Savannah Coastal Refuges are administered from headquarters located in Savannah, Georgia.