The Southport Board of Aldermen voted 4-1 last week to extend an option agreement to the state Wildlife Resources Commission to purchase from the city more than 400 undeveloped acres, but one member objected to the $637,000 price.
Wildlife Resources Commission
Mattamuskeet’s invasive carp boycott carp-removal effort
“What we found is we’re not finding the carp numbers in the lake that we thought were there,” Kendall Smith, refuge manager at Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge, told the Lake Mattamuskeet Watershed Restoration Plan Core Stakeholder Team at a recent meeting.
Public mixed on game land access pass plan during hearing
The Wildlife Resources Commission has proposed requiring paid passes for recreational uses of state game lands, a plan that could improve safety during hunting season but may make access out of reach for large user groups.
Wildlife commission seeks advisory committee nominees
Eligible North Carolina residents’ names may be submitted for the state Nongame Wildlife Advisory Committee membership through April 18.
Wildlife officials suspend Roanoke River striped bass season
The striped bass population in the Roanoke River Management Area is not recovering, despite state-imposed harvest reductions in years past, state Wildlife Resources Commission officials say.
Comment period on migratory bird hunting season to end
The public has until 5 p.m. March 2 to comment on the state’s 2025-26 migratory game bird hunting season.
State seeks feedback on proposed conservation access pass
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is proposing to implement a pass program for non-licensed hunters, fishers and trappers to access state game lands, boating accesses and shooting ranges.
Commission proposes recreational spotted trout closure
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is proposing to temporarily close recreational harvest of spotted seatrout between May and mid-June in inland and joint waters.
Manatee rescued from Greenville canal returns to wild
“Pamlico,” a 9-foot female manatee rescued last November from a canal in Greenville, has been released in Florida waters.
Put your state tax refund to work helping wildlife programs
North Carolina state tax filers can donate a portion or all of their refund to the state Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Fund.
Sleepy Creek trail segment planners intend to ‘keep it wild’
The idea behind a planned new portion of Mountains-to-Sea Trail through the Holly Shelter Game Land’s lush pocosin in Pender County is to lure hikers safely away from Highway 17 and most other signs of civilization.
Roanoke aquarium cares for 576 cold-stunned sea turtles
Of the nearly 600 cold-stunned sea turtles brought to the N.C. Aquarium on Roanoke Island earlier this month, as of Friday, 399 have been warmed up and released.
Briggs to lead Wildlife Resources Commission in 2025
Kyle Briggs moves into the role of executive director for the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission effective New Year’s Day.
Black bears’ resurgence reflects acceptance, economic spur
Conservation efforts and reforestation have allowed the species to rebound in rural northeastern North Carolina, providing a food source for families here and luring “high-net-worth” hunters and visitors.
Eastern NC’s black bears: How hunters helped save a species
Special report: The state’s black bear population was in trouble 50 years ago, but research and conservation measures put in place in the decades since — with hunters’ “direct cooperation” — have enabled the species to recover, although not everyone is happy.
Wildlife officials push back on straw bales for sand fencing
Wildlife Resources Commission officials are calling for thorough research on how wheat straw bales might affect oceanfront habitat before the state allows them to be used as an alternative to sand fencing.
