Mississippi DWFP Offers New Waterfowl Hunting Opportunity on Indianola WMA

Indianola Wildlife Management Area (WMA) was purchased in 2010 by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP).  This 1,019-acre area primarily consists of retired aquaculture ponds, which are being developed to provide quality waterfowl habitat on agricultural, moist-soil, and reforested wetland impoundments.  Since its purchase, MDWFP WMA and Waterfowl Program staff have worked to secure additional funding necessary for wetland habitat improvements including levee work, well installments, and water control structures.

Currently, wetland enhancements are being conducted on 131 acres on the West Unit of the property through State Wildlife Grant funds in cooperation with Ducks Unlimited, Inc. (DU).  In the spring and summer of 2014, MDWFP will partner with DU to restore and enhance 419 acres on the South Unit through funding secured under a North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant.  The North Unit, consisting of 226 wetland acres, is planned to have restoration and enhancement activities implemented in 2015 and 2016, provided a second NAWCA grant is approved for funding.

For the 2013-14 hunting season, a portion of Indianola WMA will be opened for waterfowl hunting on a limited-draw basis.  Permit applications will be available online later this fall at www.mdwfp.com, drawn hunters will be notified by email.

For more information regarding Wildlife Management Areas in Mississippi, visit our website at www.mdwfp.com/wma or call us at (601) 432-2199.  Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mdwfp or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MDWFPonline.

Mississippi Wildlife Fisheries and Parks

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks (MDWFP), formerly known as the Mississippi Game & Fish Commission, is an agency of the government of the U.S. state ofMississippi responsible for programs protecting Mississippi fish and wildlife resources and their habitats, as well as administering all state parks; it has its headquarters in Jackson. The agency issues hunting and fishing licenses, advises on habitat protection, and sponsors public education programs. It is also responsible for enforcement of Mississippi's fish and game laws. It is separate from the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, which is the governing body for the state's natural salt-water resources and law enforcement thereof (i.e. Gulf of Mexico, ocean-going vessels, etc.).