Smith Mountain Cooperative Wildlife Management Area is a

Wildlife Management Area A Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a protected area set aside for the conservation of wildlife and for recreational activities involving wildlife. New Zealand There are 11 Wildlife Management Areas in New Zealand: * Horsham Downs Wildlife Man ...

(WMA) in

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

and Pittsylvania counties,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Located on the shores of

Smith Mountain Lake Smith Mountain Lake is a large reservoir in the Roanoke Region of Virginia, United States, located southeast of the City of Roanoke and southwest of Lynchburg. The lake was created in 1963 by the Smith Mountain Dam impounding the Roanoke River. ...

, the WMA is owned by

Appalachian Power American Electric Power (AEP), (railcar reporting mark: AEPX) is a major investor-owned electric utility in the United States, delivering electricity to more than five million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation's largest gen ...

and cooperatively managed by the

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Virginia that regulates wildlife conservation. History The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries was created on June 17, 1916, under the ...

and the

Virginia Outdoors Foundation The Virginia Outdoors Foundation is a quasi-state agency formed by the Virginia General Assembly in 1966 "to promote the preservation of open space lands and to encourage private gifts of money, securities, land or other property to preserve the nat ...

through a

conservation easement In the United States, a conservation easement (also called conservation covenant, conservation restriction or conservation servitude) is a power invested in a qualified private land conservation organization (often called a "land trust") or gove ...

that permits public access.

History

The area was established in January 2009 when a

was donated by

to the

and the

. The land was first acquired by Appalachian Power in the 1950s during the construction of the

Smith Mountain Dam Smith Mountain Dam is a concrete arch dam located on the Roanoke River in Virginia, creating Smith Mountain Lake. The dam was built by Appalachian Power (a division of American Electric Power) between 1960 and 1963 for the purposes of pumped-storag ...

hydroelectric project.

Description

The majority of Smith Mountain Cooperative WMA () is located in

Pittsylvania County Pittsylvania County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 60,501. Chatham is the county seat. Pittsylvania County is included in the Danville, VA Micropolitan Statistical A ...

, with the remainder () in Bedford County. The WMA covers of

's southeastern shoreline on either side of

, and comprises the majority of Smith Mountain. It is adjacent to Bourassa State Forest. The WMA is heavily forested, and includes elevations ranging from .

Game animal Game or quarry is any wild animal hunted for animal products (primarily meat), for recreation (" sporting"), or for trophies. The species of animals hunted as game varies in different parts of the world and by different local jurisdictions, tho ...

s found within the area include deer, bear, turkey, squirrels, and raccoons. Several rare species and a rare type of

natural community In ecology, a community is a group or association of populations of two or more different species occupying the same geographical area at the same time, also known as a biocoenosis, biotic community, biological community, ecological communit ...

are also found within the WMA. Smith Mountain Cooperative WMA is open to the public for hunting, trapping, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and primitive camping. Access for persons 17 years of age or older requires a valid hunting or fishing permit, or a WMA access permit.

References

External links

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries: Smith Mountain Cooperative Wildlife Management Area
Wildlife management areas of Virginia Protected areas of Bedford County, Virginia Protected areas of Pittsylvania County, Virginia Protected areas established in 2009 2009 establishments in Virginia {{PittsylvaniaCountyVA-geo-stub

History

Description

See also

References

External links