George H. Dunklin Jr. Bayou Meto WMA
| Zone | County |
|---|---|
| 010 | Arkansas, Jefferson |
Mobility-Impaired Access
Waterfowl Season Access Restrictions
15-Inch Inside Spread or 18-Inch Main Beam Rule
Valid Hunting or Fishing License or a WMA/Lake Conservation Permit is Required for All Users
Factory Exhaust Only
Shell Limit (25 shells max per hunter)
Waterfowl Hunting Ends at Noon
Water Trail (paddling allowed)
Permit
HP Restrictions
Acres: 33,832
2026-27 Closed Seasons
- Bear
- Alligators
2026-27 Crow
Sept. 3, 2026-Feb. 21, 2027. Open Thursdays through Mondays only. No limit.
2026-27 Deer
Deer Archery: Aug. 29-31 (one antlered buck only); Sept. 26-Feb. 28.
Deer Alternative Firearms (permit required): Oct. 17-21.
Deer Modern Gun (permit required): Nov. 14-18.
Deer Modern Gun Youth Hunts: Nov. 7-8 and Jan. 2-3.
WMA Deer Bag Limit: Three deer, no more than two antlered bucks (15/18 Rule applies), which may include:
- Two antlered bucks with archery,
- Three antlerless deer with archery,
- One antlered buck and one antlerless deer with alternative firearms permit,
- One antlered buck and one antlerless deer with modern gun permit,
- During the youth modern gun hunt, youth may take two deer, one antlered buck (no antler restrictions) and one antlerless deer.
2026-27 Dove
Sept. 5-Oct. 25, 2026 and Dec. 8, 2026-Jan. 15, 2027
Mourning Dove and White-Winged Dove
Daily Limit – 15, possession Limit – 45
Eurasian Collared-Dove
No daily or possession limit
Eurasian Collared Doves must remain fully feathered in the field and while being transported from the field.
Dove Notes: The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission prepares a few fields each year for the opening weekend of dove season so the public has a place to enjoy this exciting form of wingshooting. Dove fields on WMAs are available on a first-come, first-served basis. WMA acreage put into dove fields is relatively small because most hunters only pursue doves the first few days of the season. However, after opening weekend of dove season, many wildlife species feed in the fields, particularly those that were top sown with winter wheat. It is unlawful to possess any shot other than federally approved non-toxic shot while hunting any migratory birds with shotguns on this WMA.
2026-27 Quail
Nov. 1, 2026-Feb. 7, 2027. Daily limit – 6
2026-27 Rabbit
Sept. 1, 2026-Feb. 28, 2027. Daily limit – 8
2026-27 Squirrel
May 15, 2026-Feb. 28, 2027. Dogs allowed. Daily limit – 12
2027 Turkey
Youth Hunt: April 10-11. One legal turkey.
Firearms Hunt: April 12-May 2. One legal turkey.
2026-27 Waterfowl
- 2026-27 Arkansas Waterfowl Hunting Guidebook
- 2026-27 Statewide Waterfowl Season Dates and Bag Limits
- 2026-27 General WMA Regulations
Waterfowl Notes:
-
- Waterfowl hunters must be off water by noon.
- No boats allowed Nov. 14-20, Nov. 30-Dec. 9, Dec. 24-25 and Feb. 1-5.
Exception — Boats allowed on the following waters:
• Mulberry Access (includes all of the Salt Bayou ditches to
the confluence of Little Bayou Meto)
• Cannon Brake Access (includes Little Bayou Meto only
within the Cannon Brake Impoundment)
• Cox Cypress and Grand Cypress lakes - Motorized boats are not allowed during waterfowl season at Buckingham Flats, Government Cypress and a portion Upper Vallier greentree reservoirs; these are walk-in areas only.
- Within Buckingham Flats GTR, waterfowl hunting will be by online draw permit only during regular waterfowl season. A limited number of permits will be available Saturdays, Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and the last day of the regular waterfowl season. Up to four hunters are allowed per party. All members of each hunting party must hunt within immediate proximity of each other. Permits are not required during the Youth Waterfowl Hunts or Veterans/Active-Duty Military Waterfowl Hunts Feb. 6-7. Apply online at agfc.com/licenses.
- Closed to all access (except in designated campsites, parking areas, boat launch ramps and boat staging areas) from 2-4 a.m. Nov. 21-Jan. 31 and Feb. 6-7. Boats may only be launched in boat staging areas after 2 a.m. and must remain occupied between 2-4 a.m.
- No outboard motors larger than 25 horsepower, surface-drive motors larger than 37 horsepower or airboats.
- No boats allowed from noon to 4 a.m. Nov. 21-29, Dec. 10-23 and Dec. 26-Jan. 30.
Exception 1 — Boats allowed from noon until 6:30 p.m. Jan. 31 and Feb. 6-7.
Exception 2 — Boats allowed from noon until 6:30 p.m. on the following waters:
• Mulberry Access (includes all of Salt Bayou ditches
to the confluence of Little Bayou Meto).
• Cannon Brake Access to include Little Bayou Meto only
within the Cannon Brake Impoundment.
• Cox Cypress and Grand Cypress lakes.
- From Nov. 21 – 29, 2026; Dec. 10 – Dec. 23, 2026; Dec. 26, 2026 – Jan. 31, 2027, Buckingham Flats GTR on George H. Dunklin Jr. WMA is open for waterfowl hunting only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays, and the last day of regular duck season.
- A limited number of online draw permits will be available on these days. Locations are first-come, first-served among permit holders. No more than four participants per party are allowed and all members of the party must hunt within immediate proximity of each other.
- Applications will be accepted online for each hunt period from 3 p.m. Thursday through midnight Sunday of the weekend immediately preceding the hunt period. Permits will be drawn and winners notified via email the Monday preceding the hunt period. Visit www.agfc.com and click on “GET A LICENSE” to apply.
- Hunting ends at noon. On the last day of regular duck season, hunting ends at sunset.
- Permits are not required during the Special Youth or Active-duty Military and Veteran Waterfowl Hunt.
About the Name
The area has several unofficial names, most of which are still in use by the public. The Bayou Meto Public Shooting Area, Wabbaseka Scatters or just the Scatters are names still commonly used to refer to the WMA. The original name was Bayou Meto Game Restoration Project.
Access
Bayou Meto WMA can be reached off U.S. highways 79, 165, 152, 88 and 276. Access to most of the area is by walk-in and boat only. The Government Cypress Tract is walk-in only.
Age
Acquisition began in 1948.
Area Notes
- Free georeferenced maps are available for this WMA and others at https://apps.agfc.com/maps/. These maps are frequently updated and include features such as parking, types of road and land boundaries.
- Wrape Plantation Waterfowl Rest Area and Halowell Reservoir are closed to access Nov.1-Feb. 15.
Camping
There are 52 primitive camp sites scattered over the entire area. Campsite boundaries are marked with signs.
Description
Bayou Meto is one of the largest state-owned wildlife management areas in the nation, encompassing 33,832 acres in Arkansas and Jefferson counties. The topography is generally flat with little more than an 11-foot change in elevation over the entire area. The area has a north-south elongation, with the southernmost extension of the area separated from the main body by a distance of one mile. Sixteen all-weather (graveled) roads are available, totaling 17.4 miles. In addition, 25 secondary (non-graveled) roads are scattered throughout the area, but are only for AGFC employees conducting management and enforcement work. There are eight permanent streams, totaling 30.5 miles, including Five Forks, Wabbaseka Bayou, Government Cypress Slough, Bear Bayou, Dry Bayou, West Bayou, Cross Bayou, Little Bayou Meto and Big Bayou Meto. Twelve intermediate streams, totaling 23 miles in length, form an extensive drainage network which feeds the major permanent waterways. Seventeen ditches totaling 26 miles contribute to the flooding and drainage. The largest and most significant is the Salt Bayou Ditch which extends 8 miles into the WMA. Six lakes, totaling 1,080 acres, are on the area. Halowell Reservoir is the largest, being 600 acres, followed by Grand Cypress lake (280 acres), Cox Cypress (150 acres) and Wrape Lake (80 acres). About 13,000 acres of Bayou Meto are flooded each fall to attract ducks. Two waterfowl rest areas, Halowell Reservoir and the Wrape Plantation, also attract ducks in fall and winter.
Hunting Opportunities
Bayou Meto’s green-timber duck hunting is some of the best in the state and constitutes the heaviest recreational use on the area. The opening days of the season can be very crowded with 1,500 to 2,000 hunters using the area each day, with the average of 350 hunters daily during the rest of the season. Duck numbers vary from one year to the next depending on the mast crop and water levels. Deer hunting is good also. During the permit gun hunt, it is not unusual for 40 to 60 bucks to be harvested. Squirrel hunting is usually excellent, but populations fluctuate depending on availability of food. Raccoon hunting is good. Dogs are allowed for squirrel, raccoon and rabbit hunting. Turkeys were stocked on the area from 1941-1968. Turkey hunting is fair to good with spring flooding often limiting hunter activity and reproductive success of the birds.
Location
Bayou Meto WMA can be reached from U.S. highways 79, 165, 152, 88 and 276. There are AGFC signs on each highway.
Management Practices
There are 20 food plots on Bayou Meto WMA. They are managed on a two-year rotation. Openings may be control burned, bush-hogged, disked and/or planted to provide supplemental wildlife foods and nesting and bugging areas for turkeys. Seasonal flooding of bottomland hardwoods offers abundant forage for waterfowl and hunting opportunities.
Ownership
Bayou Meto WMA is owned by the AGFC with four private in-holdings consisting of 380 acres. The in-holdings are posted against trespassing.
Phone
833-363-7638
Purpose
The management goal on Bayou Meto WMA is to offer quality wintering habitat for migrating waterfowl and resident wildlife while allowing opportunity for hunters. The natural woodlands/wetlands complex of the management area provides diverse habitat. Management activities improve the quality of habitat for all wildlife species inhabiting the WMA.
Restaurants and Other Facilities
Stuttgart is the nearest town offering restaurants and facilities.
Safety
Like other bottomland areas in Arkansas, Bayou Meto has its share of mosquitoes and topography capable of disorienting hunters. The use of insect repellent, a compass or GPS and an area map is advised. Submerged stumps and fallen logs can make boating dangerous, so maintaining a safe speed is important.