The statewide spring hunting season for male and bearded turkeys runs from April 11 through May 9 for all hunters. A youth-only week, for hunters younger than 16, runs from April 4-10.The daily limit is one turkey and the possession and season limits are two turkeys per hunter, only one of which may be taken during youth season. More regulations and safety tips
Hatchery Supported Trout Waters Open April 4
The Wildlife Commission will open approximately 1,100 miles of Hatchery Supported Trout Waters in 25 western counties at 7 a.m. on April 4. The season will run through Feb. 29, 2016. While fishing on Hatchery Supported Trout Waters, anglers can harvest a maximum of seven trout per day, with no minimum size limits or bait restrictions. More
Daily Trout Stocking Updates Now Posted Online
To give trout anglers better opportunities to plan fishing trips in advance, the Wildlife Commission is posting stocking dates and locations for the entire stocking season by week, and posting daily updates at noon for all waters stocked that day. Information can be searched by county, by month, or both.
Target Shooting No Longer Allowed on Holly Shelter and Stones Creek Game Lands
No target shooting is allowed on Holly Shelter and Stones Creek game lands, effective immediately. The Wildlife Commission banned target shooting on these two game lands because of habitat destruction and public safety concerns. The Wildlife Commission also now prohibits geocaching on days open to hunting during the youth-only and statewide wild turkey hunting seasons on the two game lands. Holly Shelter and Stones Creek game lands are located in Pender and Onslow counties. More
Warm Weather Brings Black Bear Sightings and Advisories
The Wildlife Commission advises that black bear sightings will become more common across the state as weather becomes warmer. While black bears are not inherently dangerous and rarely aggressive toward people, people should use caution and common sense to reduce the potential for problems. If left alone, most transient bears will find their way quickly out of town and back to natural habitat. People are urged not to approach or follow bears, or put themselves between a bear and its possible escape route. More
Barbless Hooks Required April 1-June 30 in Upper Roanoke River
From April 1 through June 30, anglers fishing in the upper Roanoke River are required to use a single barbless hook or a lure with a single barbless hook. The upper Roanoke River is defined as the main river channel and all tributaries, upstream from the U.S. Highway 258 Bridge near Scotland Neck to Roanoke Rapids Lake Dam. Find out where the striped bass are biting this spring by reading the Wildlife Commission’s Coastal Rivers Fisheries Reports for the Roanoke, Tar, Neuse and Cape Fear rivers.
White-Nose Syndrome Continues Affecting Bats
Biologists with the Wildlife Commission and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently completed winter surveys of bats and found that white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that has killed millions of bats, continues to affect bat populations in North Carolina, although the declines associated with the deadly disease appear to be leveling off, in some areas. Biologists also noted the spread of the disease as it makes it way south, with a large decline in bat numbers in a Swain County cave. More
The Wildlife Commission and the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) are tagging striped bass, and DMF is tagging spotted seatrout, red drum and southern flounder to improve management of these species. Anglers who catch a tagged fish are asked to cut off the tag and report it online or call 1-800-682-2632. When reporting the fish, please provide the date, location, tag number, length of fish, and gear used for capture. Recapture rewards and information about your tagged fish will be offered with any tag return. More
Order the Native Brook Trout License Plate and help the Wildlife Commission protect habitat for brook trout and create public access to brook trout waters in North Carolina. All of the proceeds from the sale of this plate will be used for brook trout habitat and fishing access. The final design will be very similar to the prototype pictured here. The Wildlife Commission needs a minimum of 500 paid applications by July 1, 2015 for this plate to be produced.
Learn more about the plate or order a plate by visiting the Commission’s native brook trout license plate page, or print the application (PDF).
Only a Few Days Left to Help Conserve Wildlife by Donating on Line 27 of State Income Tax Form
You have until April 15 to help ensure the health and future of wildlife and their habitats. Donate on line 27 of your N.C. state income tax form. Donations, no matter how large or small, go to the Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Fund, which the Wildlife Commission uses to conduct research, conservation and monitoring work that benefits animals not hunted or fished — animals such as songbirds, sea turtles, eagles, salamanders, frogs, turtles and bats. More
North Carolina’s Pre-Collegiate Shooting Sports Championship Set
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will host the 37th annual Youth Hunter Education Skills Tournament — the state championship for pre-collegiate shooting sports — on April 25 at the Millstone 4-H Center near Ellerbe in Richmond County. Sixty teams with more than 550 students will compete in rifle, shotgun and archery marksmanship, map-and-compass orienteering, and a written conservation knowledge test. More
Free Fishing Workshops in Fayetteville in April
Free "Outdoors Day" Festival in Corolla on April 8
Support Wildlife Diversity; Buy a Tundra Swan T-shirt
The official Wildlife Commission T-shirt this year features a Tundra Swan flying across the agency’s logo on the front, and an enlarged image of the Tundra Swan on the back. This 100% cotton T-shirt benefitting the Commission’s Wildlife Diversity Program was made possible through a generous donation from Neuse Sport Shop, located in Kinston. Available only through the Neuse Sport Shop’s website.
Other News
Wildlife Commission Temporarily Closing Cold Mountain Shooting Range for Maintenance
Landowners Invited to Free Shortleaf Pine Workshop in Troy
Becoming an Outdoors-Woman Offers Fly-Fishing Workshops
State Soil and Water Conservation Society Honors Wildlife Biologist
Wildlife Commission Approves New Regulations for 2015-16
Wildlife Commission Provides Funds for Conservation-Friendly Development Projects
N.C. Wildlife Update
Upland Gazette
WRC Rulemaking