Habitat Management

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Find resources and information for landowners regarding habitat management on their lands. 

The Game Commission owns and manages more than 1.5 million acres of state game lands throughout the Commonwealth. The primary purpose of these lands is the management of habitat for wildlife and provide opportunities for lawful hunting and trapping. Secondary recreational uses are permitted in accordance with the Game Commission’s regulations.

A prescribed fire, or prescribed burn, is an organized, coordinated effort that works to apply fire at the right place, at the right time, and at the right intensity to improve the health and resilience of forests, grasslands and shrublands. Click here to view more information about prescribed fires.

A forest is an area where tree species are the dominant type of vegetation present on the site.  Forests can be vast areas of several thousands of acres of land comprised of many different stands, or they could be smaller individual woodlots.  Forests are dynamic and always changing as they age and are affected by natural and human disturbance.  

The Pennsylvania Game Commission uses ​antlerless hunting, controlled by a strategic license allocation for each wildlife management unit (WMU), to adjust deer populations and reach management goals. 

The Game Commission is encouraging hunters to visit these areas on state game lands where habitat projects are creating new forest growth and hunter access has increased.

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