West Virginia

Bobwhite Quail Getting New Welcome in West Virginia

Published

2 years ago

September 26, 2022

Press Room

Bobwhite Quail Getting New Welcome in West Virginia

West Virginia Gov.

Jim Justice

stated he fondly remembers listening to the distinctive name of the northern bobwhite quail when he was a boy. Like many others, he hunted the birds properly into the Nineteen Seventies earlier than they largely disappeared from the state.

Now, the governor is attempting to deliver again the northern bobwhite, additionally identified merely as quail, to the Mountain State by reintroducing 21,000 of them this yr within the state’s greatest repopulation marketing campaign to this point.

“I’ve missed these little rascals and many folks have,” Mr. Justice stated at a press briefing final week saying the restoration challenge. A looking diary he retains has an entry from Christmas Eve in 1976 displaying that he shot 103 quail that yr, he stated. “It’s a chook that has been right here ceaselessly and an unimaginable wildlife that we have to shield and convey again.”

On the route of Mr. Justice, the state’s Division of Pure Sources is putting 10-week-old pen-raised birds at seven websites to reintroduce them in wildlife administration areas and a state forest.

Initially the birds will probably be positioned in packing containers they will exit on their very own to search out grain in a fenced-in enclosure to guard them from predators. Transmitters will probably be positioned on a number of the birds to watch their survival and habitat use.

Hunters who haven’t seen the northern bobwhite for years or heard its name, generally conveyed as “bob-white!” stated they’re hopeful.

“All of us keep in mind once we had quail,” stated Larry Case, a retired DNR officer who now writes about weapons and looking. Mr. Case stated one problem to the challenge is that the populations of predators for quail, from hawks to raccoons and opossums, have grown in West Virginia.

“I undoubtedly hope it really works. I’m an previous bird-dog man,” stated Mr. Case, who was reached Friday on a hilltop close to Richwood, W.Va. “I’m operating my canine and on the lookout for a spot to hunt, which is what I’m doing about half the time.”

The northern bobwhite, which has a speckled brown physique and brief grey tail, has been in steep decline within the U.S. and is now shedding half its inhabitants each seven years, stated John Morgan, director of the Nationwide Bobwhite & Grassland Initiative.

He stated the chook is a primary instance of a species that’s among the many three billion birds misplaced within the U.S. and Canada since 1970, in accordance with a 2019 examine by researchers on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The northern bobwhite continues to be present in good numbers in states equivalent to Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, partly due to conservation efforts, he stated.

Mr. Morgan’s group, a partnership of state and federal businesses and nonprofits, is concentrated on restoring the chook’s habitat in 23 states. Northern bobwhite thrive in shrubby terrain that’s disappearing as using managed fires has declined and farms more and more depend on neat parcels of land to maximise acreage, he stated.

“The wants of the species are a complete mismatch with fashionable land use,” Mr. Morgan stated. “We’re attempting to alter that tradition by saying weeds are OK and blackberry bushes are good.”

Some conservation specialists have opposed releasing pen-raised birds, and a few previous efforts have failed. Researchers at Texas A&M College present in a examine that potential causes for brief survival amongst pen-raised bobwhites are that they’ve poor flying skills and aren’t adept at avoiding predators.

In West Virginia, a a lot smaller challenge a number of years in the past utilizing wild birds from different states didn’t succeed, Mr. Justice stated. He stated the present group of birds has been “flight conditioned” and is “the perfect of the perfect to duplicate wild birds.”

With the challenge’s value at lower than $5 a chook, the governor estimates the entire determine to be round $100,000. “It’s an affordable approach of reintroducing quail again into West Virginia,” he stated on the press briefing, the place his English bulldog, Babydog, sat on a chair beside him a cage that contained some birds.

Hunters and others who’ve startled a covey of northern bobwhite say it’s an unforgettable expertise.

“You actually are in the midst of this group of 15 birds which have exploded unexpectedly at your toes,” stated Mr. Morgan. “If it occurs to you, you keep in mind it for many years.”

Write to Kris Maher at kris.maher@wsj.com

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West Virginia

Transfer WR Singleton commits to West Virginia

Published

8 hours ago

December 23, 2024

Press Room

Transfer WR Singleton commits to West Virginia

West Virginia has added a commitment from Eastern Michigan wide receiver transfer Oran Singleton.

Singleton is coming off a season where he hauled in 64 catches for 639 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also had 23 rushing yards on 6 carries.

The Florida native started his career at Akron but transferred to Hutchinson C.C.

He has one year of eligibility remaining in his career.

WVSports.com will have more with Singleton in the near future.

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West Virginia

West Virginia Wraps up Nonconference Slate with a Win Over Mercyhurst

Published

16 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

West Virginia Wraps up Nonconference Slate with a Win Over Mercyhurst

Morgantown, WV – West Virginia senior guard Javon Small scored a game-high 19 points while senior center Eduardo Andre put in a Mountaineer career-best 14 points and senior guard Tobi Okani recorded a double double with 13 points and 12 rebounds as the Mountaineers (9-2) extended their winning streak to five with a 67-4 win over the Mercyhurst Lakers (6-9) Sunday afternoon.

Mercyhurst took the early lead, but West Virginia responded with a 7-0 run, ignited with a three from freshman guard Jonathan Powell, and forced Lakers head coach Gary Manchel to take a timeout.

Lakers senior forward Jeff Planutis buried a three out of the break to get back within two. The Mountaineers answered with another 7-0 run with Javon Small opening the run with a midrange jumper and Toby Okani finishing with a backdoor to cut to the rim to cap it off for the 16-7 lead at the 12:27 mark of the first half.

West Virginia struggled to pull away from a Mercyhurst program that jumped up to the Division I level over the summer and did not grab a double-digit lead until 5:50 left in the half after a jumper from senior guard Joseph Yesufu.

Eduardo Andre gave the Mountaineers their largest first half lead of 14, and the final field goal of the half, for his nine first half points with 3:32 remaining until halftime as the Mountaineers took a 35-22 lead into the break.

After West Virginia went up 16 to begin the second half, Mercyhurst dwindled the Mountaineers lead to nine with a 7-0 run, led by Aidan Reichert putting in the final five consecutive points.

West Virginia broke the game open with a 15-0 run midway through the second half with Toby Okani lead the way with six points as the Mountaineers took a 54-32 lead and coasted to a 67-46 victory.

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West Virginia

Humanities Council’s traveling exhibition, ‘Born of Rebellion: West Virginia’s Statehood and the Civil War,’ on display in Bluefield

Published

23 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Humanities Council’s traveling exhibition, ‘Born of Rebellion: West Virginia’s Statehood and the Civil War,’ on display in Bluefield

PRESS RELEASE:

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The West Virginia Humanities Council’s flagship traveling exhibition, Born of Rebellion: West Virginia Statehood and the Civil War, is now on display at the Paine Gallery at the Bluefield Arts Center from now until February 3. Hours and information are available at www.barcwv.org.

This comprehensive, large-scale experience covers sectional tensions within Virginia preceding the Civil War, the violence and chaos of the war surrounding West Virginia’s formation and the difficult aftermath as the new state struggled to forge its destiny during Reconstruction. Born of Rebellion explores this tumultuous and complex era from a wide range of perspectives, including politicians, common soldiers, women and African Americans. Not simply a story of war and politics, Born of Rebellion conveys the complexities and pitfalls that accompanied West Virginia’s arduous journey to separation from Virginia.

“It has been such a pleasure working with Bluefield Arts and Revitalization Corporation to get Born of Rebellion in Mercer County for the holidays,” said Council Program Officer Kyle Warmack. “The Paine Gallery is a perfect display space for the exhibit, and we hope its time here provokes discussion about this part of West Virginia’s experience during the war and our journey to statehood.”

For more information about Born of Rebellion, visit wvhumanities.org and click “Traveling Exhibits” under the Programs menu. For more about the Paine Gallery, its hours of operation and other visitor information, please contact the Bluefield Arts & Revitalization Corporation at (304) 589-0239.

The West Virginia Humanities Council, an independent nonpartisan nonprofit, is the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Council is supported by the NEH, the State of West Virginia and contributions from the private sector. The purposes of the West Virginia Humanities Council are educational, and its mission is to support a vigorous program in the humanities statewide in West Virginia.

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