Pushmataha Wildlife Management Area

Pushmataha Wildlife Management Area in northern Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, was established in 1947 as a deer preserve after overhunting had reduced the state’s deer population to fewer than 500. In the Kiamichi Mountains, its 19,237 acres of oak and pine forest became a center for protecting native deer, rebuilding the herd, and restocking other parts of Oklahoma, with controlled hunts allowed by the 1960s. Managed for both habitat and research, it includes a long-running fire-frequency study and uses prescribed burning to improve timber and wildlife foods. The refuge also supports diverse plant life and many species, including reintroduced elk.

Oklahoma · United States