The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has accepted the donation of land including a historic African American cemetery that is the final resting place of enslaved, skilled workers at the historic Catoctin Furnace in Frederick County. The Maryland Park Service takes stewardship of this two-acre site as part of Cunningham Falls State Park. As part Read the Rest…
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has added a one-week extension to the 2026 muskrat trapping season in all counties except Allegany, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, Howard and Washington. The revised season will now close March 22 to make up for unfavorable weather conditions in January and February, including extensive ice coverage, that impacted trapping in parts Read the Rest…
Officers were honored for exceptional conservation law enforcement, dedication to waterway safety, and courageous rescue efforts. The Maryland Natural Resources Police held its annual award ceremony February 25 to recognize the achievements made by conservation law enforcement officers and professional staff in 2025. The officers were presented honors by Maryland Department of Natural Resources Sec. Read the Rest…
When it comes to seafood sanitation and public health, the National Shellfish Sanitation Program has for 100 years ensured shellfish sold in the United States meets standards for human consumption. Maryland plays a key role in the compliance and enforcement of the program’s principles as one of the leaders of commercially-exported seafood among coastal states. Read the Rest…
Visitors can get a taste of sweet Maryland tradition The Maryland Department of Natural Resources invites everyone to come celebrate the annual Maple Syrup Festival at Cunningham Falls State Park, the weekends of March 14-15 and March 21-22. During this event, held annually for more than 50 years, guests can gather around the Sugar Shack Read the Rest…
A new Maryland Department of Natural Resources study revealed that bowfishing and gigging – using a pronged spear – are the most common ways Chesapeake Channa (also known as northern snakehead) are harvested in Maryland. These methods eclipse hook-and-line, commercial, and departmental management harvest of the invasive fish. The study, published in Integrated and Comparative Read the Rest…
Beverly Carroll is a pioneer – as the first African American female police officer in the history of the Maryland Natural Resources Police, she entered a world she wasn’t familiar with in more ways than one.
Extended season is being put in place to help watermen who have been unable to harvest due to ice-covered waterways Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources is moving forward with a two-week extension of the commercial oyster season to help watermen make up for lost harvesting opportunities after many waterways and parts of the Chesapeake Bay Read the Rest…
The public will have a chance to celebrate the community and culture of outdoor adventure on Maryland’s Eastern Shore at the first-ever Explore the Shore Expo, held on Saturday, Feb. 21 in Cambridge. Explore the Shore is a one-day, family-friendly festival uniting outdoor brands, local businesses and community members to celebrate the history and tradition Read the Rest…
Funding approved for DNR’s Program Open Space Local, Local Parks and Playgrounds Infrastructure, Rural Legacy and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Permanent Easement programs The Board of Public Works today approved more than $7.1 million in grants from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to local governments and land trusts for recreation centers and land conservation in Read the Rest…
Larval striped bass appeared to have enough to eat in 2023 and 2024 The availability of tiny plankton that larval striped bass eat during their first weeks of life does not appear to be a leading factor for the recent poor spawning success of the fish in Maryland, according to a new study by scientists Read the Rest…
Comment period includes migratory game bird season proposal for the coming season The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is accepting public comment on proposed changes to the 2026-2028 hunting and trapping seasons and the proposed 2026-2027 Migratory Game Bird Seasons and Bag Limits. The public can view the proposed regulations and comment online, as well as view and comment on the proposed migratory Read the Rest…
Statewide harvest is 7.2% lower than the 5-year average Maryland deer hunters harvested 71,649 deer during the combined archery, firearms, and muzzleloader seasons, from Sept. 5, 2025 through Feb. 4, 2026. The statewide harvest reported to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources included 29,814 antlered and 37,925 antlerless white-tailed deer, and 1,874 antlered and 2,036 Read the Rest…
The Maryland Park Service will launch a new, modern reservations management system on Tuesday, February 24 that will provide visitors a faster, more intuitive way to reserve campsites, cabins, mini-cabins, pavilions, and other amenities statewide at 37 Maryland State Parks. The new system represents a major upgrade to Maryland’s park reservations experience, featuring improved performance Read the Rest…
Program has operated for eight years, supporting a range of environmental projects in the state In its eight years of operation, Maryland’s Resilience through Restoration Initiative has supported more than three dozen projects in the state and transferred millions of dollars into critical environmental efforts that protect communities, shore up habitat, and provide lasting economic Read the Rest…
A wildlife biologist’s work is never done, even in cold winter temperatures. Some species studied by our herpetology team lend themselves to tasks best completed in fall, winter, and early spring. Among them is the wood turtle, Glyptemys insculpta, perhaps one of the most charismatic of Maryland’s turtle species. Wood turtles are also one of Read the Rest…
HabiChat article by Sarah Witcher When was the last time you thought about shrews? Many a gardener has been known to shriek as they see a small, brown, furry thing scampering through their garden, provoked by weeding or a shovel in the soil. Often the thing has dashed away so quickly, we can’t see it Read the Rest…
Habichat article By Katy Gorsuch What’s your favorite tree? If you’re any of Maryland’s thousands of native animals, your answer may be an oak! Maryland boasts 22 species in the oak genus (Quercus), 21 of which are native. Maryland’s state tree is the white oak (Quercus alba), and from 1940 until 2002 an individual white Read the Rest…
HabiChat article By Katy Gorsuch Given the flair with which the Moon circles the Earth, it’s not at all strange that both humans and animals would become fascinated with it. In the past hundred years, certain folk names for the full moons have popped up in modern American culture, although many of them go back Read the Rest…
Deep in one of the coldest winters in recent memory, many Marylanders are already thinking ahead to spring. But thanks to the frozen waters of the Chesapeake Bay, our iconic striped bass could be receiving a boost. Scientists believe environmental factors such as warmer, drier winters and decreased spring water flow rates are the driving Read the Rest…
Anglers will see a 26% increase in stocked trout, monthly schedule, and allocation adjustments to enhance their experience and catch rates The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has spent the cold winter preparing for trout fishing, one of spring’s most anticipated traditions. Based on feedback from angler surveys, the department is making some changes Read the Rest…
Effort aims to bring the rarest freshwater fish species in Maryland back to its native habitats On a picture-perfect, mid-September Monday, a dozen staff from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service caravaned down a rutted dirt road in a Wildlife Management Area to witness a conservation milestone. Read the Rest…
Natural Resources Police and Wildlife and Heritage Service staff helped rescue six waterfowl hunters stranded on a disabled vessel on the Nanticoke River on the evening of Jan. 31. First responders were dispatched around 6:30 p.m. that Saturday evening, however local fire rescue crews were unable to reach the stranded boaters due to unnavigable waters Read the Rest…
Above average Canada goose and diving duck numbers likely reflect colder winter During the first week of January, aerial survey teams of pilots and biologists from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted the annual inventory of ducks, geese and swans wintering along the state’s Chesapeake Bay, tidal Potomac River and Atlantic Read the Rest…
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is offering free tree seedlings to landowners statewide who have a creek, drainage ditch, stream, or other waterway on or near their property through the Backyard Buffers program, Each “buffer in a bag” includes 20-30 native tree and shrub bare-root seedlings, approximately 1 to 2 feet in height. Maryland Read the Rest…
