February 10, 2020 at 8:11 pm
By Regional Wildlife Biologists Kendall Marden
One of Maine’s most underappreciated natural resources is public land. Many folks from the western U.S. are used to having access to millions of acres of public land. On the contrary, accessing private land in the west is a challenge and often involves paying for that privilege. We are lucky in the northeast that many private landowners still give permission to recreate on their land for nothing more than just a promise to respect the property. Human populations continue to grow, and our rural culture changes. Consequently, that privilege is becoming less common.
There are a number of different types of public lands in Maine. Most know of state parks and historic sites, but many people don’t realize that Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife manages well over 100,000 acres of land across the state, in addition to the 145 boat launches for the public to access many of Maine’s inland waters. “Wildlife Management Areas” as these properties are known are scattered across the state from the town of Eagle Lake near Fort Kent all the way down to York, although the majority of them are within easy reach of most of the state’s population in the southern half of the state. The primary purpose for these properties are to ensure continued habitat for Maine’s wildlife and provide a space for enjoying the outdoors in an undeveloped area.
These properties range in size from dozens of acres to thousands. Opportunities for outdoor recreation on these public lands abound and are variable. Some areas are largely wetlands providing interesting habitat for birdwatching or waterfowl hunting, while others provide large areas of young forest interspersed with older forests and fields great for deer or partridge hunting and a variety of important songbirds. Unlike many of the southeastern states where public land is limited, and private land access is difficult many of these Wildlife Management Areas see minimal use especially during the winter months.
Now is a great time to go practice your map and compass skills and traverse the forest without trails, take a snowshoe hike in hopes of finding a shed deer antler, or look for a pine grosbeak in the tree tops.
For more information on Wildlife Management Areas and where to find them checkout: https://www.maine.gov/ifw/fish-wildlife/wildlife/lands/wildlife-management-areas/index.html