Longleaf pine forests once covered more than 2 million acres in parts of 36 counties in South Mississippi. Today, less than 250,000 acres of longleaf pine forest remain. The primary causes for the loss of longleaf acres include over-harvest, conversion to other forest types, fire suppression, and urban sprawl.

Young longleaf pine tree in forestLongleaf pine is well-suited to a variety of sites and management regimes in South Mississippi. Well-managed longleaf pine forests, including sites that are burned often and managed at a low to moderate stocking, provide excellent habitat for a variety of game and non-game animals.

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, as well as the US Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA-NRCS, Wildlife Mississippi, and others support the restoration and management of longleaf pine forests by providing technical guidance to private landowners. Common management recommendations include reforestation of longleaf pine, prescribed burning, and invasive species control.

Please contact one of the follow wildlife biologists for more information about longleaf pine:

Contact Information

MDWFP Private Lands Biologist
Caleb Hinton
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Randy Browning
Tamara Campbell