Join us for exciting events in May!

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Ready to learn something new? May 2026

The Department of Wildlife's staff is springing toward summer with several exciting educational opportunities!

You can see all of the Department's upcoming events on our website.

Ready to Improve Your Hunting Skills?

Enroll in our Hands-On Courses.

Have you completed an online hunter education course, but are still looking for more hands-on experience? The New Mexico Department of Wildlife may have just what you're looking for!

The Department is hosting a free Advanced Hunter Education Skills Camp from May 15-17 at Caballo Lake State

Park for youth ages 10-17. Don't miss out on this hands-on immersive opportunity to learn more about safe and responsible firearms handling, ethical hunting behaviors, wildlife identification and survival skills. A portion of the camp will be dedicated to shotgun shooting, and all equipment will be provided. Participants will also get the chance to learn from Department conservation officers about wildlife investigations, decoy operations and working with wildlife.

Additionally, participants will tent camp at Caballo Lake State Park and meals will be provided. Registration is open now — don't delay as slots will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Department will also host Advanced Hunter Education Skills Camps from June 24-26 at Vermejo Park Ranch and July 17-19 near Navajo Lake State Park.

All participants must be accompanied by a registered adult, and have a Customer Identification Number account with the Department. They must also complete the required assignments before attending.

Learn how to reel in the big one!

Want to learn how to catch crappie? The Department of Wildlife, along with New Mexico Outdoor Adventures, is hosting a Family Crappie Fishing Camp at Navajo Lake State Park from May 29-31!

Everything is included in this free camp: instruction, gear and meals. All you'll need to bring is your fishing license, a tent or wheeled camper, a sleeping bag and a sleeping pad. The camp is open to families and individuals with previous fishing experience

who have never fished for crappie before.

Registration begins at 8 a.m. Monday, May 11 , and will close when the camp is full. Please only register if you have not previously attended the camp. Those under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

New Mexico archers shine at NASP 3D and Bullseye Western National Championships

New Mexico's top archers put on quite a show at the National Archery in the Schools (NASP) Western National Championships last month in Sandy, Utah, finishing right among the best of the best.

Ashlynn McGinnis, a junior from Early College High School in Deming, posted a personal-best score of 292 to finish second out of 996 competitors in the girls' high school division of the 3D tournament. She also finished seventh in the bullseye tournament with a score of 291.

Rhiannon Ramos, a freshman at SAMS Academy in Albuquerque, finished 27th overall with a score of 285 in the bullseye tournament, and Axiom Christian Classical junior Lily Zunic (282) brought home a top-50 finish as well.

Top finishers in the girls' middle school division included Irene Gomez from Red Mountain Middle School in Deming, who posted a personal-best 280 in the 3D tournament. Gomez also posted a 265 in the bullseye tournament, with teammates Johana Gonzalez (268) and Fabiola Villagran (267) also shining. Lily McWenie, a sixth-grader at Taylor Middle School, posted a score of 264.

Cubero Elementary's Jasmine Soboleff's personal-best score of 254 in the 3D tournament earned her a 20th-place finish in the girls' elementary school division. Her teammate, fourth-grader Aliya Chino (251), was sixth among all fourth-grade girls in the bullseye tournament, and Ashlie Rogers of Maggie Cordova Elementary recorded a score of 248.

The boys were led by Red Mountain Middle School's Isaac Ramirez, whose 288 put him just outside the top-10 in the middle school division in the 3D tournament. Albuquerque Academy sixth-grader Hugo Hashagen scored a 282 in the elementary division, and Estancia Valley Classical Academy's Austin Leeto and Early College High School's Cody Warren each shot 276.

Hashagen finished fourth in the boys' middle school division and first among all sixth-graders during the bullseye tournament, posting an eye-popping 290. Dean Cillessen of Estancia Valley Classical (281) and Ramirez (279) each recorded top-40 finishes.

Wyatt Otero of SAMS Academy shot 281 in the high school boys' bullseye tournament, with Estancia Valley Classical's Uriah Cruz at 280, Warren with a personal-best 278 and Early College High School's Luis Armendariz at 276.

Estancia Valley Classical's Nikolas Griego (262) was among the top-40 finishers in the boys' elementary school division.

Early College High School finished seventh of 53 teams in the 3D tournament and 25th in the bullseye tournament. Deming High School was 22nd in the 3D tournament, with SAMS Academy 24th in 3D and 37th in bullseye. Estancia Valley Classical was 39th in the 3D tournament.

Red Mountain Middle School was fifth in the middle school division of the 3D tournament and 17th in the bullseye tournament. Estancia Valley Classical brought home a 23rd-place finish in 3D.

Maggie Cordova Elementary finished 20th in 3D and 21st in bullseye, and Corrales K-8 was 24th in 3D.

Congratulations to all New Mexico archers! For more information about NASP in New Mexico and how to get involved, visit the Department's website .

Complete results from the Western Nationals are available on the NASP Tournaments website .

It's time to celebrate!

Join the New Mexico Department of Wildlife for a family-friendly day of outdoor fun, wildlife experiences and community celebration as we mark two major milestones: The completion of a decade-long renovation of the Glenwood State Fish Hatchery and the opening of the new Glenwood Allred

Wildlife Management Area, a beautiful…