List of Louisiana Wildlife Management Areas

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List of Louisiana Wildlife Management Areas
Wildlife Management Areas, Widlife Refuges, and Conservation Areas in Louisiana'"`UNIQ--ref-00000004-QINU`"'

Louisiana Wildlife Management Areas are protected conservation areas within the state of Louisiana. The goal is protecting, conserving, and replenishing wildlife, including all aquatic life. Wildlife Management Areas may be owned or managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. The Enforcement Division ensures compliance of laws and rules and regulations regarding the management, conservation, protection of natural wildlife and fisheries resources, and providing public safety.

Contents

Ecoregions

Louisiana is divided into areas called ecoregions, West Gulf Coast Plain (WGCP) with 370,861 acres, East Gulf Coast Plain (EGCP) with 198,377 acres, Mississippi Alluvial Valley - North (MAVN) with 128,736 acres, and the Mississippi Alluvial Valley - South (MAVS) with 257,999 acres. [1]

Wildlife Management Areas

Louisiana Wildlife Management Areas: [2]

NameParish or ParishesAcresOwner
Acadiana Conservation Corridor Wildlife Management Area Avoyelles, Evangeline, Rapides, St. Landry 2,285Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries [3]
Alexander State Forest Rapides 8,158State of Louisiana
Atchafalaya Delta Wildlife Management Area St. Mary 137,695U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), LDWF, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE)
Attakapas Wildlife Management Area Iberia Parish, St. Martin, St. Mary27,962State of Louisiana, United States Army Corps of Engineers
Bayou Macon Wildlife Management Area East Carroll 6,919Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Bayou Pierre Wildlife Management Area DeSoto, Red River 2,799Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Ben Lilly Conservation Area [4] Morehouse 247State of Louisiana; managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) [5]
Big Colewa Bayou Wildlife Management Area West Carroll 1,798Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Big Lake Wildlife Management Area Franklin, Madison, Tensas 19,231Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Biloxi Wildlife Management Area St. Bernard 35,644Biloxi Marsh Land Corporation
Bodcau Wildlife Management Area Bossier and Webster 33,766U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and a private corporate landowner
Boeuf Wildlife Management Area Caldwell, Catahoula 51,110Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Buckhorn Wildlife Management AreaTensas11,121Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Catahoula Lake Wildlife Management Area La Salle 29440State of Louisiana
Bussey Brake Wildlife Management AreaMorehouse2,600Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Clear Creek Wildlife Management Area (former Boise-Vernon WMA) Vernon 52,559Boise Cascade sold to Forest Capital Partners, LLC., then sold to Molpus Woodlands Group and The Hancock Timber Resource Group
Dewey W. Wills Wildlife Management Area (former Saline WMA)Catahoula, LaSalle, Rapides63,984Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, LaSalle Parish School Board, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers [6]
Elbow Slough Wildlife Management AreaRapides160Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Elm Hall Wildlife Management Area Assumption 2,839Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries [7]
Esler Field Wildlife Management Area Rapides, Grant 12,500 [8] Louisiana National Guard
Floy Ward McElroy Wildlife Management Area Richland 681Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries [9]
Fort Johnson North Wildlife Management Area (formerly Peason Ridge WMA) [10] Sabine, Natchitoches, Vernon74,309U.S. Army
Fort Johnson-Vernon Wildlife Management Area Vernon105,545 [8] U.S. Army and U.S. Forest Service [11]
Grassy Lake Wildlife Management Area Avoyelles Parish12,983Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Hutchinson Creek Wildlife Management Area St. Helena 129Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
J. C. "Sonny" Gilbert Wildlife Management Area (former Sicily Island Hills WMA) [12] Catahoula Parish7,524Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries:
John Franks Wildlife Management AreaCaddo3,664U.S. Army Corps of Engineers


Joyce Wildlife Management Area Tangipahoa 42,292Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Joyce Foundation (851 acres), and Tangipahoa School Board (484 acres) [13]
Lake Boeuf Wildlife Management Area Lafourche 800Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Lake Ramsay Savannah Wildlife Management Area St. Tammany 796Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Little River Wildlife Management AreaGrant, LaSalle, and Rapides6,045Resource Management Service, LLC and LDWF (4,164), LDWF and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (5951)
Loggy Bayou Wildlife Management Area Bossier6,558Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Manchac Wildlife Management Area St. John the Baptist 8,328Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Marsh Bayou Wildlife Management AreaEvangeline655Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Maurepas Swamp Wildlife Management Area Ascension, Livingston, St. John the Baptist, St. James and Tangipahoa112,615Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Pass a Loutre Wildlife Management Area Plaquemines 115,000Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Pearl River Wildlife Management Area St. Tammany35,619Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Peason Ridge Wildlife Management Area Sabine, Natchitoches, and Vernon74,309U.S. Army, U.S. Forest Service
Pointe-aux-Chenes Wildlife Management Area Terrebonne and Lafourche33,488Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Pomme de Terre Wildlife Management Area Avoyelles6,434Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Richard K. Yancey Wildlife Management Area (former Red River/Three Rivers WMA) [14] Concordia 70,872Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Russell Sage Wildlife Management Area Morehouse, Ouachita and Richland 38,213Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries
Sabine Island Wildlife Management Area Calcasieu 8,343State of Louisiana and Calcasieu Parish Schools
Sabine Wildlife Management Area Sabine 7,571Forest Capital Partners, LLC, et al
Salvador\/Timken Wildlife Management Area St. Charles 34,520Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (Salvador); City Park Commission of New Orleans (Timken)
Sandy Hollow Wildlife Management AreaTangipahoa Parish4,655Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (3,514 acres) and Tangipahoa Parish School Board (181 acres)
Sherburne Complex Wildlife Management Area Pointe Coupee, St. Martin, and Iberville 43,637LDWF, USFWS, and USACOE
Soda Lake Wildlife Management Area Caddo 2,500Caddo Levee District, USACOE
Spring Bayou Wildlife Management AreaAvoyelles12,506Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Tangipahoa Parish School Board Wildlife Management AreaTangipahoa1,643Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (Free Lease)
Thistlethwaite Wildlife Management AreaSt. Landry11,100Thistlethwaite Heirs
Tunica Hills Wildlife Management Area West Feliciana 6,503Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Walnut Hill Wildlife Management AreaVernon595Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
West Bay Wildlife Management Area Allen 59,189Hancock Timber, Roy O. Martin, Forest Investment
White Lake Wetland Conservation Area [15] Vermilion71,905Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries

Former WMA

The LDWF free-lease on the more than 25,000-acre Jackson - Bienville Wildlife Management Area (a WMA since 1961) [16] was not renewed as of July 1, 2016, [17] as an agreement with the Weyerhaeuser Company could not be reached. Nesting areas of the Red-cockaded woodpeckers are still subject to protection by the State of Louisiana and the LDWF under current laws and rules and regulations. [18]

Ben's Creek Wildlife Management Area in Washington Parish, with 13,044-acres (since 1987), was removed as a free-lease so the public can no longer use the property. [19]

Georgia Pacific WMA

A 25,480-acre tract of land, bordered on the west by the Upper Ouachita National Wildlife Refuge, managed by the LDWF under a twenty-five year lease with tax exemptions that started in 1994, was removed as a WMA in 2003. [20] The property, previously known as Terzia Game Preserve, under cooperative agreements with the state of Louisiana since 1935, was renamed Georgia Pacific WMA in 1966. Georgia Pacific Corporation transferred the property to a subsidy, The Timber Company, and the property was acquired by Plum Creek Timber Company during a 2001 merger. A local attorney brought a lawsuit in 2002 challenging the legality of a 1987 Legislative act (LSA-R.S. 56:24), that exempted local and state property taxes on corporate forest lands leased to the State for hunting by the public, that allegedly conflicts with Section 21 of Article 7 of the Louisiana Constitution. The lawsuit will likely have far reaching implications on land made available to the public that includes over 400,000 acres in Louisiana. With the potential loss of tax exemptions more property owners will likely not renew leases and many will opt to self-manage property pursuing other uses like leasing to hunting clubs, that have become a lucrative deal. [21]

Conservation areas

White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area in Vermilion Parish

Wildlife refuges

NameParish or ParishesAcresOwner
Elmer's Island Wildlife Refuge Jefferson Parish 1,145State of Louisiana: Managed by the LDWF [22]
Isle Dernieres Barrier Islands Refuge Terrebonne Parish: Wine, Trinity/East, Whiskey, and Raccoon Islands1,900State of Louisiana [23]
Marsh Island Wildlife Refuge Iberia Parish 76,664 (now 71,000)LDWF [24]
Queen Bess Island Wildlife RefugeJefferson37Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge Cameron Parish, Vermilion Parish 71,000State of Louisiana [25]
St. Tammany Wildlife Refuge St. Tammany Parish 1,310Owned by LDWF; cooperatively managed by LDWF and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [26]
State Wildlife RefugeVermilion13,000LDWF [27]
Waddill Wildlife Refuge and Outdoor Education Center East Baton Rouge Parish 250LDWF [28]

Related Research Articles

Loggy Bayou is a 17.3-mile-long (27.8 km) stream in northwestern Louisiana which connects Lake Bistineau with the Red River. Bistineau is the reservoir of Dorcheat Bayou, which flows 115 miles (185 km) southward from Nevada County, Arkansas, into Webster Parish. Loggy Bayou flows through south Bossier Parish, west of Ringgold, in a southerly direction through Bienville Parish, and into Red River Parish, where north of Coushatta it joins the Red River, a tributary of the Mississippi. At East Point, LA, the river has a mean annual discharge of 1,960 cubic feet per second.

Pass a Loutre Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a 115,000-acre (47,000 ha) protected wetland in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, United States. The WMA is located due south and bordering the 48,000 acre Delta National Wildlife Refuge, accessible only by air or boat, contains the Pass A L'Outre Lighthouse, and Port Eads is within the boundary.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) is a state agency of Louisiana that maintains state wildlife and fishery areas. The agency is headquartered in the capital city of Baton Rouge.

The Sherburne Complex is a joint land management venture of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that began in 1983. The area consists of 43,637 acres (17,659 ha), and is managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. The complex is located in the Morganza Flood way system of the Atchafalaya Basin about 30 miles (48 km) west of Baton Rouge, Louisiana and actually extends a little south of the I-10 Atchafalaya Basin Bridge at Whiskey Bay, Louisiana. The bridge crosses the Whiskey Bay Pilot Channel. Located on the graveled LA 975, the west boundary is on the east side of the Atchafalaya River with the east boundary being the East Protection Levee. The complex stretches just north of old highway 190, and a short distance to the south of I-10. The nearest town is Krotz Springs to the north off US 190.

Attakapas Wildlife Management Area, also known as Attakapas Island Wildlife Management Area, is a 27,962-acre tract of protected area located in St. Mary, St. Martin, and Iberia Parishes, Louisiana. The property was acquired in 1976 and is under the authority of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF). The LDWF has 25,730 acres and the USACOE has 2,200 acres.

Clear Creek Wildlife Management Area is a 52,559-acre (21,270 ha) tract of protected area located in Vernon Parish, Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) leases the land from Hancock Timber.

Dewey W. Wills Wildlife Management Area, also just called Dewey Wills Wildlife Management Area and formally known as the Saline Wildlife Management area, is a 63,984-acre (25,893 ha) tract of protected area located in LaSalle Parish, Catahoula Parish, and Rapides parish, in Central Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) owns 63,901 acres, the LaSalle Parish School Board owns 1530 acres, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USCOE) owns 265 acres, managed by the LDWF.

The Richard K. Yancey Wildlife Management Area, formerly the Red River/Three Rivers Wildlife Management Area, is a 70,872-acre (28,681 ha) tract of protected area in lower Concordia Parish, Louisiana. The area is owned by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE). The WMA is located off LA 15 approximately 35 miles (56 km) south of Ferriday between the Red River and the Mississippi River.

White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area (WLWCA), officially the White Lake Property, is a 71,905-acre tract of protected area located 7.4 miles (11.9 km) south of Gueydan at the south end of Louisiana Highway 91 in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana.

Maurepas Swamp Wildlife Management Area is a 112,615-acre (45,574 ha) tract of protected area located in parts of Ascension, Livingston, St. John the Baptist, St. James and Tangipahoa Parishes, Louisiana encircling three sides of Lake Maurepas.

West Bay Wildlife Management Area, also known as West Bay WMA, is a 59,189-acre tract of protected area near Elizabeth in Allen Parish, Louisiana. The WMA is managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) from land owned by Boise Paper Solutions, Roy O. Martin Lumber Company, Forest Investments Associates, and Weyerhaeuser.

Russell Sage Wildlife Management Area, also referred to as Russell Sage WMA, is a 38,213-acre (15,464 ha) protected area in Caldwell, Morehouse, Ouachita, and Richland Parishes, Louisiana. It was the first WMA owned by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries upon purchasing 15,000 acres of property in 1960. The WMA is located about seven miles east of Monroe and 10 miles west of Rayville. The 2,767-acre Kennedy Tract was purchased in 2015. There are 2,955 acres owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 1,240 acres owned by the Ouachita Parish School Board, and 13,332 acre Ouachita WMA that was consolidated in 2015.

Biloxi Wildlife Management Area also referred to as Biloxi WMA, is a 35,644-acre (14,425 ha) privately owned tract of protected marsh land located in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF). The land is owned by Biloxi Marsh Lands Corporation, owning approximately 90,000 acres (36,000 ha) of land in St. Bernard Parish, that started leasing land to the LDWF as early as 1957. Access is limited to boats as there are no roads in the WMA. The nearest road access is LA 46 to Shell Beach or LA 624 to Hopedale.

Fort Johnson North Wildlife Management Area, known locally as Peason Ridge WMA, is a 74,309-acre tract of protected area located in the Parishes of Natchitoches, Sabine, and Vernon, in the state of Louisiana. The WMA is managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).

Salvador Wildlife Management Area is a protected area in St. Charles Parish Louisiana covering a combined total of over 36,000 acres (15,000 ha). The WMA is located 11 miles (18 km) south of New Orleans, Louisiana, and provides habitat for many species of animal and plant life with hunting, fishing, and boating as the predominant activities. Commercial fishing or harvesting is not allowed.

Joyce Wildlife Management Area is a 42,292 acres (17,115 ha) protected area in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, owned by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. It is located 10 miles (16 km) south of Hammond and features a boardwalk leading into the swamps on the northwest corner.

Big Lake Wildlife Management Area, (WMA) also referred to as Big Lake State WMA, is a 19,231 acres (7,783 ha) tract of protected land located in Franklin, Tensas, and Madison Parish, Louisiana, owned and managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).

Pomme de Terre Wildlife Management Area, also referred to as Pomme de Terre WMA, is a 6,434 acres (2,604 ha) protected area located in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana owned and managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).

Acadiana Conservation Corridor is a 2,285 acres (925 ha) wildlife corridor owned and managed as a wildlife management area by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).

Esler Field Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a 12,500 acres (5,100 ha) protected area in parts of Rapides and Grant parishes in the state of Louisiana.

References

  1. ↑ Land Development & Management: Ecoregions- Retrieved 2017-02-08
  2. ↑ Louisiana WMAs- Retrieved 2024-04-17
  3. ↑ Bayoubucks.com: Acadiana Conservation Corridor WMF- Retrieved 2017-02-06
  4. ↑ Ben Lilly Conservation Area Retrieved 2024-05-26
  5. ↑ LDWF:Ben Lilly Conservation Area
  6. ↑ Louisiana Sportsman: Dewey Wills WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-06
  7. ↑ Elm Hall WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-06
  8. 1 2 Yoshonis, Scott (2023-06-28). "LDWF renames wildlife management areas to reflect removal of military references to Confederacy". KLFY. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  9. ↑ Floy Ward McElroy WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-06
  10. ↑ Iles, Trey. "U.S. Army and LDWF Announce Peason Ridge WMA Renamed Fort Johnson North WMA | Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries". Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries . Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  11. ↑ Fort Polk WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-06
  12. ↑ Louisiana Sportsman- Retrieved 2018-05-15
  13. ↑ LDWF- Retrieved 2017-11-30
  14. ↑ Richard K Yancey: Former Red River/Three Rivers WMA- Retrieved 2017-03-04
  15. ↑ White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area Retrieved 2024-05-26
  16. ↑ Jackson - Bienville WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-19
  17. ↑ Jackson - Bienville removed from WMA participation- Retrieved 2017-02-19
  18. ↑ title-Jackson Bienville closure is disappointing. Author- Andy Crawford/date- July 1-2016/Retrieved 2024-07-07
  19. ↑ title-Ben’s Creek WMA dropping from system. Date- May 21, 2012/Retrieved 2024-07-07
  20. ↑ Georgia Pacific property removed as a WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-21
  21. ↑ The Pineywoods.com: Lawsuit over Georgia Pacific WMA- Retrieved 2017-02-21
  22. ↑ Elmer's Island Wildlife Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
  23. ↑ Isle Dernieres Barrier Islands Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
  24. ↑ Marsh Island Wildlife Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
  25. ↑ Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
  26. ↑ St. Tammany Wildlife Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
  27. ↑ State Wildlife Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
  28. ↑ Waddill Wildlife Refuge- Retrieved 2017-07-14
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