Highland Wildlife Management Area – Jack Mountain/Buck Hill Road

Elevation: 2392 ft.

This extensive, 14,000+-acre wildlife management area encompasses a diversity of habitats and wildlife. Altitude within this site spans over 2000 feet, with the lowest elevation of 1800 feet along Bullpasture River to over 4000 feet at the top of Sounding Knob on the Jack Mountain Tract. In addition to riverine habitats, this site offers mature oak-hickory hardwood forests, mixed woodlands, red spruce stands, and early succession fields. Due to the varied habitats and elevation, the diversity of nesting migrants includes scarlet tanager, rose-breasted grosbeak, and Kentucky, hooded, black-throated blue, and black-throated green warblers. Common resident avian resident species include pileated woodpecker, ruffed grouse, and red-shouldered hawk. Wild turkey is also abundant throughout this area. Birding is typically best in the spring and fall, when migrant thrushes, warblers, and vireos are numerous.

Black bear, as well as red and gray foxes, make their homes in these woods, but are often elusive to the onlooker. Look for salamanders such as northern dusky and red-backed salamanders, as well as other amphibians such as pickerel frog.

Since late 2017, the Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR), who owns and manages this site, has been improving habitat for golden-winged warblers in four existing forest openings along the WMA’s Jack Mountain ridgeline.  These improvements include connecting two existing openings by removing trees in between them, thus creating a larger, core area of open golden-wing habitat; encouraging shrub growth through natural seed dispersal; and cutting back forest edges to create shrubby conditions. Ultimately, this project seeks to expand habitat for an existing population of golden-winged warblers breeding in the adjacent valley, so that they may colonize new areas and grow in number. In the meantime, these shrubland habitat improvements are also helping a large number of other bird species, including field sparrows, Eastern towhees, brown thrashers and warblers, such as chestnut-sided warbler and yellow-breasted chat.

Notes:

• To Access the Site: A Restore the Wild Membership, Virginia hunting license, freshwater fishing license, boat registration, or an access permit is required.
• This site may be closed during certain times of year for hunting or land management. See seasonal access information on the Highland WMA website.
• If you are visiting this site during hunting seasons, please wear blaze orange/pink for safety.