List of Texas Wildlife Management Areas


Texas Wildlife Management Areas are divided into seven regions of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department with the goal of managing and conserving the natural and cultural resources of Texas. There are under management of the Division of Wildlife often referred to as a WMA.

WMA areas

There is some confusion as there are also listed eight Wildlife Management Areas that roughly coincide with the 10 ecoregions.
The following are all designated Wildlife Management Areas in Texas:
NameCountySizeDescriptionRegion
Alabama Creek WMATrinity County14,561 acresPart of the Davy Crockett National ForestArea 3
Alazan Bayou WMANacogdoches County2,063 acresPurchased in 1991 for bottomland hardwood forest preservation around the Angelina River that includes Loco Bayou and Moral Creek.Area 3
Angelina-Neches/Dam B WMAJasper County and Tyler County12,636 acresLocated at the fork of the Angelina River, Neches River and the B.A. Steinhagen Reservoir. 7,000 acres are part of the reservoir.Area 3
Atkinson Island WMAHarris and Chambers County150 acresLocated on the southern end of Atkinson Island and acceptable by boat only. The WMA was donated by Conoco, Inc. as a non-game wildlife preserve.Area 4
Bannister WMASan Augustine County25,695 acresPart of the Angelina National Forest under a memorandum of understanding with the US Forest Service. The WMA is situated on a peninsula extending into Sam Rayburn Reservoir and is designated an eastern wild turkey restoration site.Area 3
Big Lake Bottom WMAAnderson CountyPurchased 1990Area 2
Black Gap WMABrewster CountyApproximately 103,000 acres/additional 16,000 acres being addedLocated 55 miles south of Marathon Big Bend National Park
The Texas Game and Oyster Commission purchased 54,000 acres from the Combs Cattle Company in 1948. Location is 55 miles south of Marathon. Shares 25 miles of the Rio Grande with the Mexican State of Coahuila to the south and where the Serranias del Burro and Sierra del Carmen mountain ranges. Native bighorn sheep was almost extirpated but re-introduction efforts have proven successful. Twenty-five square miles are being added to the WMA with a 2018 approved purchase plan.		Area 7
Caddo Lake WMAMarion County and Harrison County8,005 acresA state park managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and operated as a WMA. Large portion purchased in 1992. Chosen as a wetland of international importance, specifically as a waterfowl habitat and protected under the Ramsar Convention. Contains a permanently flooded and largest bald cypress swamp in the world as well as a seasonally flooded bottomland hardwoods.Area 3
Caddo National Grasslands WMAFannin County17,873 acresDesignated a National Grassland. Operated under two units: Ladonia Unit and the Bois D'Arc Unit.Area 2
Candy Cain Abshier WMAChambers County207 acresPurchased in 1990 and located near Smith Point along Galveston and Trinity Bay. A birding center with an observatory, a hawk watch tower.Area 4
Cedar Creek Islands WMAHenderson County160 acresThree islands in Cedar Creek Reservoir.Area 2
Chaparral WMALa Salle County and Dimmit County15,200Purchased from the Light family in 1969, as a research and demonstration facility, with funds provided by the Pittman–Robertson Act. In 2008 a destructive fire burned over 60,000 acres including ninety-five percent of the WMA.Area 5
Cooper WMADelta County, Hopkins County19,280 acresAdjacent to Jim Chapman Lake/Cooper DamArea 2
D.R. Wintermann WMAWharton County246 acresA wetlands area was created with water from the Colorado River that attracts migratory birds including bald eaglesArea 4
East Texas Conservation CenterA TPWD Jasper Fish Hatchery that started in 1932.Area 3
Elephant Mountain WMABrewster County23,147 acresLocated 26 miles south of Alpine the land was donated in 1985. Wildlife includes the desert bighorn sheep, pronghorn antelope, scaled quail, as well as the whiptail lizards, and spadefoot toads.Area 7
Gene Howe WMAHemphill County5,886 acresUsing Pittman-Robertson funds the WMA was purchased in 1950 and 1951.Area 1
Gene Howe WMA - W.A. "Pat" Murphy UnitLipscomb County432 acresA unit of the Gene Howe WMA that includes 89 acres of creek bottom. The unit is used for instructional, educational, and research purposes.Area 1
Guadalupe Delta WMACalhoun County, Victoria County and Refugio County7411.34 acresThe WMA has four units: Mission Lake Unit, Hynes Bay Unit, Guadalupe River Unit, and the San Antonio Unit. State and federally threatened species observed: brown pelican, reddish egret, white-faced ibis, wood stork, bald eagle, white-tailed hawk, peregrine falcon, and whooping crane. Rare/endangered species: diamondback terrapin.Area 4
Gus Engeling WMAAnderson County11,000-acres21 miles northwest of Palestine. The unit was named for the first biologist assigned to the area who was killed by a poacher just before Christmas in 1951.Area 2
J.D. Murphree WMAMcMullen county24,498 acresThe Big Hill Unit was acquired in 1958, the Lost Lake Unit was purchased in 1983, expanded in 1997, and renamed Salt Bayou Unit. The Hillebrandt Unit was added in 1987. The American alligator is abundant and harvested annually by special drawn permit. Rare/endangered species: piping plover, green sea turtle, hawksbill sea turtle, ridley sea turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, and the Louisiana black bear.Area 4
James E. DaughtreyLive Oak County and McMullen county34,000 acresThe WMA is named after state game warden James E. Daughtrey, who was fatally injured in a vehicle accident while pursuing suspects in McMullen County.Area 5
Justin HurstBrazoria County11,93810,311 acres was purchased from 1985 to 1988. Another 1,627 was added in 1998. The land was originally part of the Peach Point Plantation was owned by James F. Perry and his wife Emily, who purchased it in 1832 from her brother Stephen F. Austin, and it was a slave plantation until 1863. Emily gave her son Bryan and his wife Lavinia 200 acres they called the Durazno Plantation and a part of this became the WMA.Area 4
Keechi Creek WMALeon County1,500 acresPurchased in 1986 from a wildlife habitat mitigation obligation of the Brazos River Authority because of the land lost from the construction of the Sterling C. Robertson Dam on Lake Limestone, Navasota River.Area 2
Kerr WMA6,493 acresThe WMA was purchased from the Presbyterian MO Ranch Assembly in 1950 under the Pittman-Robertson Act using Federal Aid for Wildlife Restoration Program funds.Area 6
Las Palomas WMA, Anacua UnitCameron County222 acresUsed as a dove breeding habitat.Area 5
Las Palomas WMA, Lower Rio Grande Valley UnitsCameron County, Hidalgo County and Presidio County3,311 acresLocation is in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.Area 5
Lower Neches WMAOrange County near Orange7,998 acresThe WMA is eight miles southwest of Orange with the Sabine Lake on the east side. The Old River Unit borders the Neches River on the north side and has a wildlife viewing platform.Area 4
M.O. NeasloneyGonzales County100 acresUsed as a wildlife ecology field.Area 2
Mad IslandMatagorda County7,200 acresPurchased in 1987 and located just west of MatagordaArea 4
Mason Mountain WMA5,301A former exotic game ranch acquired through personal donation by the TPWD in 1997. There are species of the scimitar-horned oryx, Gemsbok, common Waterbuck, Greater Kudu, Thomson's Gazelle and the axis deer.Area 6
Matador WMACottle County28,183 acresPurchased in 1959 for the purposes of wildlife research, wildlife management, and public use.Area 1
Matagorda IslandCalhoun County56,688 acresA 38 mile long island that is from one mile to four and one half miles wide. Jointly owned by the Texas General Land Office and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, cooperatively managed as the Matagorda Island National Wildlife Refuge and State Natural Area, by the Texas Parks and Wildlife. The Matagorda Island Light is still found on the island.Area 4
Moore Plantation WMASabine County and Jasper County26,772 acresThe WMA is part of the Sabine National Forest under a cooperative agreement with the US Forest Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife, and the adjacent land owners. The endangered red cockaded woodpecker is present.Area 3
Muse WMA Brown County1,972.5 acres15 miles northeast of Brownwood
Nannie M. StringfellowBrazoria County3,664 acresThe WMA is located around 5 miles south of Brazoria, 7 miles southeast of Sweeny and northwest of San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge and Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area.
Nature CenterSmith County in Tyler82 acresPreviously a bird hatchery and has a pond stocked with rainbow trout.Area 3
North Toledo BendShelby adjacent to Toledo Bend Reservoir.3,650 acresManaged under a license agreement with the Sabine River Authority of Texas.Area 3
Old Sabine BottomSmith County5,158 acresLocated five miles northeast of Lindale between the Old Sabine River Channel and the Sabine River.Area 3
Pat MayseLamar County8,925 acresApproximately 11 miles northwest of Paris, just southwest of Chicota wraps around the western side of Pat Mayse Lake. Sanders Creek, Craddock Creek and Sand Branch run through the WMA.
.		Area 2
Playa Lakes, Armstrong UnitCastro County160 acresRoadside viewing only of migratory waterfowl and shorebirds.Area 1
Playa Lakes, Dimmitt UnitCottle County422 acresPurchased in 1990 there are 345 acres of farmland planted with a native grass mixture and a 77-acre playa basin.Area 1
Playa Lakes, Taylor Lakes UnitDonley County530 acresPurchased in 1993. Located about 60 miles southeast of Amarillo and 50 miles northwest of Childress near the community of Lelia Lake. Note: A playa is a form of geographic sink often referred to as a dry lake in the U.S. The three related WMA playas seasonally have water and then dry by evaporation.Area 1
Powderhorn Ranch WMACalhoun County15,000 acresAdded in 2018 the ranch was funded largely by the Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Around 4,000 acres will be returned to grassland prairie and the remaining land is under a five-year plan to be returned to the State Parks division for a future state park.
Redhead PondNueces County20 acresLocated in Flour Bluff. Approximately 10 acres of marsh with a 10-acre pond and observation platform. Also known as Redhead Pond #066.Area 4
Richland Creek Wildlife Management AreaAnderson CountyCyauga is about halfway between the WMA and Gus Engeling WMA. The WMA is divided into the north unit and south unit. Severe flooding in December 2015 caused major damage to levees and to all six pumps supplying water from the Trinity River for three months.Area 2
Sam Houston National Forest WMAMontgomery County, San Jacinto County, and Walker County.161,508 acres47,609 are located in Montgomery County, 59,746 acres in San Jacinto County, and 54,153 acres in Walker County. Operated under a memorandum of agreement with the US Forest Service.Area 3
Sierra Diablo WMAHudspeth County and Culberson County11,625 acresAcquired in 1945 as a sanctuary for the last remaining desert bighorn sheep in Texas.Area 7
Tawakoni WMAHunt County and Van Zandt County2335 acres1,561 acres are owned by Sabine River Authority of Texas, the WMA Pawnee Inlet Unit has 1,381 acres, the Caddo Creek Unit has 162 acres, the Duck Cove Unit has 792 acres, with a small portion in Hunt County and the remaining land in Van Zandt CountyArea 2
Tony Houseman WMAOrange CountyLocated at the Texas travel center from I-10, on the west side of the Sabine River. There is a 600 ft boardwalk leading from the travel center building into the swamp for wildlife viewing.Area 4
Welder Flats WMACalhoun County1480 acresOwned by the General Land Office. Viewing of the endangered whooping crane.Area 4
White Oak Creek WMABowie County, Cass County, Morris County and Titus County.25,777 acresMostly centered around the confluence of the Sulphur River and White Oak Creek. Managed under license agreement with the US Army Corps of Engineers.Area 3
Yoakum Dunes WMACochran County, Terry County and Yoakum County.14,037 acresLocated near Lubbock. A primary goal for the WMA is the recovery and preservation of the threatened lesser prairie chicken.Area 1