Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources

The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources maintains Wildlife Management Areas for the benefit of all citizens for a variety of outdoor recreational opportunities. With over 225,000 acres across the state, these wild places and uncrowded spaces are prime for adventure. 

Related Stories

Bright blue crustacean, a Big Sandy crayfish
For the iconic Big Sandy crayfish, home-sweet-home is the sandy, pebbled river bottom of the McClure, the 17.9-mile-long river that flows through the heart of central Appalachia. The Service and it’s partners Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources and West Liberty University are working to...
A brown-shelled mussel on a sandy environment.
The purple bean is a freshwater mussel that keeps America's waters clean but is losing ground due to habitat destruction and pollution. Thanks to a new round of IRA funding, this hero in a clam shell can begin a path to recovery.
Bright blue, Big Sandy crayfish resting on a rock.
Biologists released hatchery-raised Big Sandy crayfish in Virginia for the first time, marking a historical step towards recovery for the federally threatened species.
Cluster of James spiny mussels resting on a blue backdrop
After it had disappeared from almost 95% of its historic range, the Service declared the James spinymussel endangered in 1988.  In the upper reaches of the James River watershed in West Virginia and Virginia and in parts of the Dan River watershed in North Carolina near the Virginia border, however...

Partner Category

We often partner with non-governmental conservation organizations on conservation projects, whether it's to conserve identified species such as the monarch butterfly or to advise on land acquisition for conservation so that it has the greatest benefit for species.

Those who experience the outdoors and wildlife first-hand become its greatest conservationists.  We partner with these groups to foster their love of wildlife and conservation.

Our hands-on stewardship and public engagement is often done in conjunction with state and provincial agencies.

Other Partners

Here are just a few of our National Partners. You can view the full list of FWS partners, along with the regions and areas of focus our work together entails.

Partnership Services

Through our partnerships we are able to expand our capabilities through the inclusion of services in areas such as:

  • Grant opportunities
  • Sponsorship of grants
  • Cooperative Agreements

To find out more about how our partner provides services view our partner services below.