List of Wildlife Management Areas in Arkansas

Last updated


This is a list of Wildlife Management Areas in Arkansas . All counties are represented except Boone, Chicot, Crittenden, Dallas, Fulton, Grant, Jackson, Lincoln, and St. Francis County. [1]

Contents

Wildlife Management Areas in Arkansas
NameCounty or countiesArea (acres)Year EstablishedRemarksImage
Bayou Des Arc WMAWhite9531966Created with a 320-acre public fishing lake. [2] Lake Des Arc 004.jpg
Bayou Meto WMAArkansas, Jefferson33,832Called the "George H. Dunklin Jr. Bayou Meto WMA" and also called "Wabbaseka Scatters" or just the "Scatters". [3] Bayou Meto.jpg
Beaver Lake WMABenton, Carroll, Madison8,007Includes Devil's Eyebrow Natural Area. [4] Beaver Lake with changing leaves.jpg
Bell Slough WMAFaulkner2,040Kenny Vernon Nature Trail and Bell Slough Water Trail. [5]
Benson Creek Natural Area WMAMonroe1,458Includes 610 acres of bald cypress/water tupelo swamps along Bayou DeView. [6]
Beryl Anthony Lower Ouachita WMAAshley, Union7,0203,600 new acres to be added in 2018 and 2019. The WMA joins the Moro Big Pine WMA and the Warren Prairie Natural Area WMA having colonies of Red cockaded woodpeckers. [7]
Big Lake WMAMississippi12,32019507,000 acres purchased in 1950. The rest purchased up to 1969. [8]
Big Timber WMAClark45,000Includes 3,500 acres (Olds Foundation) added in 2018. Also known as Big Timber Leased Lands WMA. Private land owners including The Ross Foundation, Clark Timberlands, Anthony Timberlands. and Red River Texarkana that is managed by Hancock Forest Management giving annual leases to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. [9]
Blevins WMAHempstead1281991 [10]
Blue Mountain WMALogan8,200Corps of Engineers property. [11] Blue Mountain Lake, Arkansas 001.jpg
Brewer Lake Cypress Creek WMAConway1,200Surrounds Brewer Lake. [12]
Brushy Creek WMA [13] Cross215Co-op of private land owners that have joined together. [14]
Buffalo National River WMABaxter, Marion, Newton, Searcy95,730The entire 135 miles of the Buffalo National River is a WMA. Certain areas are also under national park regulations for hunting and fishing. [15] [16] [17] Buffalo National River, Harrison, AR.png
Camp Robinson WMA [18] Faulkner, Pulaski26,675
Caney Creek WMAHoward, Montgomery, Pike, Polk85,0001968Contains Caney Creek Wilderness Caney Creek Wilderness, AR - panoramio.jpg
Casey Jones WMAAshley, Drew83,832
Cattail Marsh WMAGreene78
Cedar Creek WMAScott103
Cherokee Prairie Natural Area WMAFranklin566
Cherokee WMACleburne, Conway, Independence, Logan, Pope, Scott, Stone, Van Buren62,203
Cove Creek Natural Area WMAFaulkner228
Crossett Experimental Forest WMAAshley1,675
Cut-Off Creek WMADrew9,314
Cypress Bayou WMALonoke, White2,478
Dardanelle WMAFranklin, Johnson, Logan, Pope, Yell42,658 Lake Dardanelle.jpg
Dave Donaldson Black River WMAClay, Greene, Randolph21,150
DeGray Lake WMAClark, Hot Spring14,000
Departee Creek WMAWhite450
DeQueen Lake WMASevier8,792Owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. [19]
Devil’s Knob Natural Area WMWAIzard519
Dr. Lester Sitzes III Bois D’Arc WMAHempstead13,646
Earl Buss Bayou DeView WMAPoinsett4,435
Ed Gordon Point Remove WMAConway, Pope8,694
Electric Island WMAGarland115
Ethel WMAArkansas176Formerly only open to residents of Ethel
Falcon Bottoms Natural Area WMAColumbia, Lafayette, Nevada2,787
Fort Chaffee WMACrawford, Franklin, Sebastian66,000The WMA is within Fort Chaffee Maneuver Training Center area. WMA rules are in effect and a Sportsman’s Orientation class is compulsory. [20]
Freddie Black Choctaw Island WMA Deer Research Area East UnitDesha8,300Also referred to as the Choctaw Island WMA. The WMA is not a true island but includes the Choctaw Bar Island in the Mississippi River [21]
Freddie Black Choctaw Island WMA Deer Research Area West UnitDesha
Frog Bayou WMACrawford8122005Partnership with Ducks Unlimited and the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service and expanded in 2017 with The Trust for Public Land and Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration money. The WMA is located along Frog Bayou, that is also known as Clear Creek, adjacent to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers land. [22]
Galla Creek WMAPope3,329The Galla Creek WMA is among several others involving controversy of flooding protocols used in Greentree reservoir management that has seen deteriorated conditions and a substantial dying off of timber. [23] [24]
Garrett Hollow Natural Area WMAWashington670
Gene Rush WMANewton, Searcy17,963
Greers Ferry Lake WMACleburne, Van Buren9,914
Gum Flats WMAHoward, Pike15,661
H. E. Flanagan Prairie Natural Area WMAFranklin457The Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission (ANHC), a division of the Department of Arkansas Heritage added the property in 1988. [25] Along with the Presson-Oglesby Preserve (The Nature Conservancy, 155 acres), and the Cherokee Prairie (ANHC) are three contiguous tracts of protected prairie land. [26]
Hall Creek Barrens Natural Area WMA [27] Cleveland
Harold E. Alexander Spring River WMASharp13,859
Harris Brake WMAPerry3,769
Henry Gray Hurricane Lake WMAWhite17,524
Hobbs State Park – Conservation Area WMABenton, Carroll, Madison11,744
Holland Bottoms WMALonoke6,190
Hope Upland WMAHempstead2,115
Howard County WMAHoward26,000
Howard Hensley Searcy County WMASearcy170
Iron Mountain Natural Area WMAPolk260
Jamestown Independence County WMAIndependence971
Jim Kress WMACleburne14,527
Jones Point WMAMarion1,200
Kingsland Prairie Natural Area WMACleveland400
Lafayette County Natural Area WMALafayette16,739
Lake Greeson Natural Area WMAHoward, Pike200
Lee County WMALee200
Little Bayou WMAAshley1,284
Little River WMAHempstead, Little River597
Loafer’s Glory WMA2,616
Maumelle River WMAPulaski
McIlroy Madison County WMAMadison14,496 Looking out into the Ozark forest from the Bluff Shelter.jpg
Mike Freeze Wattensaw WMAPrairie19,184
Moro Big Pine Natural Area WMACalhoun16,000
Mount Magazine WMALogan, Yell120,000
Muddy Creek WMAMontgomery, Scott, Yell146,206
Nacatoch Ravines Natural Area WMAHempstead645
Nimrod/Lloyd Millwood WMAYell3,550
Norfork Lake WMABaxter10,000
Ozan WMAHempstead580
Ozark Lake WMACrawford, Franklin7,834
Palmetto Flats Natural AreaLittle River1848
Petit Jean River WMAYell15,502
Pine City Natural Area WMAMonroe870
Piney Creeks WMAJohnson, Newton, Pope180,000
Poison Springs WMANevada, Ouachita17,604
Prairie Bayou WMALonoke453
Provo WMASevier11,327
R. L. Hankins Mud Creek Upland WMARandolph1,0251989Deeded by FMHA. [28]
Railroad Prairie Natural Area WMAPrairie244
Rainey WMAPope488
Rex Hancock Black Swamp WMAWoodruff7,221
Rick Evans Grandview Prairie WMAHempstead4,885
Ring Slough WMAClay83
River Bend WMAPerry
Roth Prairie Natural Area WMAArkansas41
Sandhills Natural Area WMAMiller143
Scott Henderson Gulf Mountain WMAVan Buren14,0001970Created as "Gulf Mountain WMA" with an initial purchase of 6,400 acres. A 3,600-acre purchase and smaller tracts totaling 2,012 was added in 1971. 2,000 acres of Green Bay Packaging's Arkansas Mill division land was added to the WMA. The company owns over 250,000 acres in the state and this was part of the companies "Sustainable Forestry Initiative". [29] Located 12 miles southwest of Clinton the Little Red River bisects the southern area and the Ozark National Forest is the northern boundary. [30]
Seven Devils WMADrew5,032
Sheffield Nelson Dagmar WMAMonroe9,720
Shirey Bay Rainey Brake WMALawrence10,711
Slippery Hollow Natural Area WMAMarion705
Spring Bank WMALafayette701
St. Francis National Forest WMALee, Phillips
St. Francis Sunken Lands WMACraighead, Greene, Poinsett, Clay27,643Patchwork of state and privately held lands along the St. Francis River preserving bottomland hardwood forest river bottoms, well known for waterfowl and deer hunting. [31]
Stateline Sandponds Natural Area WMAClay4,000
Steve N. Wilson Raft Creek Bottoms WMAWhite4,000
Sulphur River WMAMiller16,681
Sweden Creek Natural Area WMAMadison137
Sylamore WMABaxter, Marion, Searcy, Stone150,000 Vernonia arkansana.jpg
Terre Noire Natural Area WMAClark415 Terre Noire Natural Area 001.jpg
Trusten Holder WMAArkansas, Desha8,173
Two Bayou Creek WMAOuachita1,250
W.E. Brewer Scatter Creek WMAGreene
Warren Prairie Natural Area WMABradley, Drew2,128
Wedington WMABenton, Washington16,000 Lake Wedington 001.jpg
White Cliffs Natural Area WMALittle River573
White Rock WMA Crawford, Franklin, Johnson, Madison, Franklin, Washington 280,000 Shelter on White Rock Mountain.jpg
Whitehall WMAPoinsett111
Winona WMAGarland, Perry, Saline160,000

Former WMAs

Wildlife Management Areas in Arkansas
NameCounty or countiesArea (acres)Year EstablishedYear DissolvedRemarks
Ozark National Forest WMAConway, Crawford, Frankliln, Johnson, Madison, Newton, Pope, Searcy, Van Buren, Washington678,8782023 [32] Merged into neighboring WMAs [32]

See also

References

  1. Wildlife Management Areas- Retrieved 2019=07-27
  2. Bayou Des Arc Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  3. Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  4. Beaver Lake Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  5. Bell Slough Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  6. Benson Creek Natural Area Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  7. Beryl Anthony Lower Ouachita Wildlife Management Area (April 11, 2018)- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  8. Big Lake Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  9. Big Timber Wildlife Management Area (by Randy Zellers Nov. 21, 2018)- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  10. Blevins Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  11. Blue Mountain Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  12. Brewer Lake Cypress Creek Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  13. Brushy Creek Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-20
  14. Brushy Creek Wildlife Management Co-op- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  15. NPS: Buffalo National River Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  16. Pierce, Jason. “Creating the Natural State: Outsiders, Insiders, and the Buffalo National River.” Ozark Historical Review 35 (2006, pp. 34–49)- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  17. Encyclopedia of Arkansas: Buffalo National River Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  18. Camp Robinson WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  19. DeQueen Lake WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  20. Land Conservation Assistance Network: Fort Chaffee WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-21
  21. Audubon: Choctaw Island Wildlife Management Area- Retrieved 2018-02-21
  22. Frog Bayou WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  23. Greentree Reservoir Management- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  24. Duck hunters realize changes necessary at green tree reservoirs (Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette)- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  25. H. E. Flanagan Prairie Natural Area WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  26. Nonnative Species Control at the Cherokee Prairies in the Arkansas River Valley (pp. 2)- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  27. Hall Creek Barrens Natural Area WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  28. R. L. Hankins Mud Creek Upland WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  29. Arkansas Mill division- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  30. Gulf Mountain WMA- Retrieved 2019-02-22
  31. "Quake Creates Habitat". Southwest Times Record . Fort Smith, AR: Gannett. October 29, 2012. OCLC   15172460 via Newsbank.
  32. 1 2 Ledbetter, Richard (April 8, 2023). "Arkansas turkey season open for youths". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Little Rock: WEHCO Media. ISSN   1060-4332 . Retrieved June 5, 2023.