Black Bear Habitat in the Mississippi Delta

Black Bear Cub © William S. Lea

In January 2008, the state of Mississippi was granted sufficient funding to restore 7,950 acres of critical black bear habitat in the Mississippi Delta through the State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) program offered by the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA). The SAFE program allowed conservation funding requests that would benefit high priority state conservation objectives through the use of targeted restoration of vital habitat on private lands. The funding was awarded in response to a proposal spearheaded by The Nature Conservancy and the Bear Education and Restoration Group of Mississippi (BEaR). The SAFE program allowed the Conservancy and BEaR partners to devise a restoration strategy that would effectively provide habitat for the federally endangered Louisiana black bear on private lands.

This SAFE program, which is not yet officially open for enrollment as of late February, will be available to eligible landowners in the Delta counties that qualify. Interested parties should be on the lookout for further information and program specifics as FSA moves toward an official release date and subsequent sign-up period. This is a wonderful opportunity for interested landowners in the Mississippi Delta to aid in the restoration of the Louisiana black bear to its native range in Mississippi and is a significant achievement for The Nature Conservancy’s recently established Mississippi Delta Program.

For more information on the Delta Conservation Program, please contact Daniel Sumerall, Delta Conservation Program Coordinator.

The Nature Conservancy

Delta Conservation Program

2524 South Frontage Road, Suite C

Vicksburg, MS  39180
(601) 629-6612