The Magnolia Reporter reports that the state’s Game and Fish Commission added almost 6,000 acres to its wildlife management system over the course of 2018, thanks in large part to federal Wildlife Restoration Act funds. The land is now available for hunting other recreational uses. According to state officials, the acreage includes land ideal for hunting deer and small game, as well as waterfowl.
Here’s the roundup from the Reporter:
[Assistant chief of AGFC’s wildlife management division Matt] Warriner noted these additions, which total 5,877 acres, to the state’s WMAs in 2018:
— 975 acres at Cypress Bayou WMA (White County);
— 511 acres at Beryl Anthony Lower Ouachita WMA (Union County);
— 311 acres at Gene Rush WMA (Newton County);
— 3,400 acres at Big Timber WMA (Clark County) through a multi-year lease agreement;
— 680 acres to four WMAs through a MOA with Arkansas Department of Transportation for mitigation lands – 161 acres at Sulphur River WMA (Miller County), 282 acres at St. Francis Sunken Lands WMA (Poinsett County), 158 acres at Dardanelle WMA (Johnson County) and 85 acres at Village Creek WMA (Jackson County).
The Game and Fish Commission is also finalizing a deal to purchase an additional 3,000-acre area, using federal Wildlife Restoration Act funds, near the Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge.