West Virginia
WVU genomics lab assesses stability of West Virginia elk herd as species recovers from 200-year absence – Dominion Post
A symbol of strength, nobility and dignity, elk are a North American icon. After vanishing from the Mountain State in the 1800s, the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources (WVDNR) launched a long-brewing plan to reintroduce elk to the state in 2016. Nearly a decade later, West Virginia University researchers are working to ensure the population remains healthy and strong for future elk tourism and hunting opportunities.
The WVU Wild Genomics Lab is no stranger to underdog success stories. Dr. Amy Welsh, professor of Wildlife and Fisheries Resources at the WVU Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design, has led genetic assessments of several other species reintroduced to West Virginia. This includes an ongoing study of river otters and a previous evaluation of fishers — the latter of which demonstrated exactly what researchers hope will also be true for elk in West Virginia: adequate genetic diversity, interbreeding between West Virginia individuals and surrounding states and, as a result, a viable and strong population.
The West Virginia elk herd began with just 24 elk brought from Kentucky to the most suitable place in the state identified for elk management: a former coalfield in southern West Virginia, now known as Tomblin Wildlife Management Area. Since then, several subsequent introductions and reproduction within the introduced elk has brought the herd’s numbers to around 200 strong, traversing the mountains of West Virginia and following the footsteps of those from nearly two centuries prior.
Although elk have been missing from West Virginia’s food chain for so long, they’ve returned to their niche easily. Elk play a vital role in the ecosystem, where they act as a food source for predators and scavengers, disperse seeds and maintain grasslands through their grazing and, overall, help balance the ecosystem.
The herd has not been without challenges, however. Elk of different subspecies from both Kentucky and Arizona have been introduced to West Virginia: Manitoban elk and Rocky Mountain elk. Some of the animals died due to a parasitic brain worm transmitted by white-tailed deer, the latter of which is a prime concern of the lab’s research efforts.
Using DNA extracted from tissue, the lab has begun examining the genetic diversity of the herd — the biological variation within a population’s genetic characteristics. By analyzing the genes of individual elk, the lab is searching for signs of inbreeding, reproduction between the two subspecies and signs of genetic predispositions to parasite-induced fatalities.
Post-reintroduction genetic assessments are not a routine practice, which Welsh attributes to a focus on the greater picture — population size and whether the species can be harvested — as opposed to the finer details.
“There really hasn’t been much of a focus on genetic assessments,” said Welsh. “You might have a decent number of individuals, but are they all genetically the same? It’s a change in paradigm in management agencies realizing that a lot of times those finer scale questions are important in truly assessing whether or not you have reintroduction success.”
High levels of genetic diversity support a population’s overall health and resilience through environmental changes such as diseases, parasites, climate change and other stressors. This enables the species to thrive short and long-term, and, for the West Virginia elk herd, long-term success means greater opportunities for elk tourism and hunting opportunities — some of the WVDNR’s core goals for the population.
“[Elk tourism] provides a greater opportunity for getting people involved in conservation. You don’t have to already be interested in conservation to want to go see these large, charismatic animals,” said graduate student Adam Cook. “If you can draw people in with something cool that most people want to see, like elk, it helps them care more about everything the WVDNR is doing and become more engaged in certain natural resources aspects of the state.”
Elk are a great bridge for conservationists and hunters alike, said Welsh. Both communities have investments in the population’s long-term success, and the WVDNR’s efforts receive support from both groups.
The public interest in elk has not gone unnoticed by state officials — early this year, Gov. Jim Justice announced an almost $7 million investment in elk tourism, including a visitors’ center and observation tower in Tomblin Wildlife Management Area, allowing tourists and locals alike to view the majestic animals in their natural habitat.
Welsh and Cook’s genetic studies are expected to conclude by the end of Cook’s thesis in May 2025, at which point results of the study will be able to advise WVDNR on future management efforts of the West Virginia elk herd.
For more information on the state elk herd and tourism opportunities, visit WVDNR.gov/plants-animals/elk.
BEVERLY, W.Va (WDTV) – The West Virginia Celtic Festival took place Saturday at Camp Pioneer in Randolph County.
People from around the country came to celebrate their Scottish and Irish heritage at the fourth annual event.
The festival included Irish dancing, Highland games and live Celtic music. Participants set up tents around the park for the public. Artifacts from Celtic heritage and history were on display.
The event was expected to reach up to 5,000 attendants.
“Today we’re hosting the fourth annual West Virginia Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival and Highland Games. It’s a celebration of Celtic culture and heritage and history,” said David Ferguson, a participant. “We have Highland Games, heavy athletics. We have the athletes throwing the cabers, throwing the heavy stones. A lot of fun athletics to watch. We have Highland dancers. We have musical entertainment. We have something for everybody. We have a lot of fun activities for the kids.”
A Kirkin’ o’ the Tartan service will take place Sunday at the Beverly Presbyterian Church.
Copyright 2026 WDTV. All rights reserved.
West Virginia
Notebook: MCWS as good as advertised; West Virginia no overnight success story – WV MetroNews
Ahead of a June 10th trip to Omaha, I’d only heard positive reviews of the Men’s College World Series and the city that hosts it.
After an eight-night stay in Nebraska’s biggest city, it’s easy to see why.
The event at Charles Schwab Field was well-run and organized starting with Thursday practice for each of the eight participants.
The ballpark, which opened in 2011, is a state of the art, clean venue with a wide variety of concession offerings and a spacious press box that easily accommodated media members while all eight teams played two games over the first four days.
Crowds were strong and made their presence felt, particularly over the first several days.
There are fan-friendly activities just outside the stadium and no shortage of restaurants and bars within walking distance to partake in pregame or postgame festivities.
Perhaps Troy coach Skylar Meade summed it up best after the Trojans were eliminated Tuesday with a 12-0 loss to West Virginia that marked their second setback to the Mountaineers over a 96-hour stretch.
“Every person who came here now knows what this place is,” Meade said. “It’s the most unique place in the world. It’s the best college sporting event bar none. No offense to the others. Rose Bowl is awesome. It ain’t this.”
— — — — —
This was the third straight year I was present for West Virginia’s last game of the season after being on hand for the 2024 Super Regional series at North Carolina and again last year at LSU on the same stage.
Taking in the atmosphere in 2025 at Alex Box Stadium, when the Mountaineers played in front of consecutive crowds of 12,000-plus, provided a look at college baseball I’d never experienced and a newfound appreciation of the sport.
The MCWS took it a step further and continued the ascension of a Mountaineer program that gained national notoriety while hosting the Morgantown Regional and a Super Regional series against Cal Poly.
Envisioning WVU playing on the premier stage in college baseball was unfathomable a decade ago and even highly unlikely as recently as five years back.
But let’s not forget this is a program with four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and one of only two (North Carolina the other) to reach the Super Regional round each of the last three years.
What transpired this season as the Mountaineers set a new single-season program mark with 47 victories is a culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of people within the program and athletic department alike, but it cannot be considered an overnight success story.
While West Virginia was swept in best-of-three sets in Chapel Hill and Baton Rouge, it’s important to remember those were 36 and 44-win teams that won regionals outside of Morgantown — feats fans should appreciate even more after witnessing the postseason atmosphere at Kendrick Family Ballpark.
WVU hadn’t won in the Super Regional round prior to this season, but two years ago, it had a ninth-inning lead against the Tar Heels in Game 1 and lost Game 2 by one run. Last season, the Mountaineers were eliminated by the eventual national champion.
“There are financial realities of the sport, and people may have assumptions about specific programs or about West Virginia in general that may or may not be correct,” WVU coach Steve Sabins said. “We have a whole lot of people working really hard on a whole lot of different areas, whether that’s Gold & Blue Enterprises, whether that’s BioPrecision with us, whether that’s the School of Sports Science or Biomechanics and Performance Center, whether that’s third-party NIL, specific donors, West Virginia has all of that.
“And it’s competing at the highest levels in all these areas, and I think it would probably surprise a lot of folks of the amount of effort, work, attention to detail and financial resources that have been poured into our program.”
— — — — —
A tip of the cap to West Virginia senior outfielder Brock Wills.
The UNC Wilmington transfer was a mainstay in the Mountaineer lineup throughout the regular season and Big 12 Conference Tournament when he appeared in 50 of 53 games with 45 starts.
When the NCAA Tournament rolled around, Sabins opted to start fellow senior Ben Lumsden in place of Wills.
The decision proved difficult to debate as Lumsden came up with numerous hits in key spots and finished 12-for-37 with three home runs, two doubles, 13 RBI and 11 base-on-balls over 11 games.
Wills, meanwhile, came off the bench to play in three NCAA Tournament games, one of which was Wednesday’s 12-7 season-ending loss to North Carolina when he came on as a right fielder to start the fifth inning.
Wills had three plate appearances against the Tar Heels, the first of which was a well-struck, but tough-luck double play on a liner to second base with the bases loaded in the sixth. He followed it with a walk in the seventh and a single in the ninth.
“So awesome. That kid has been such an instrumental piece of this team,” Sabins said. “In high-level competition, things don’t always go your way. There’s only nine dudes that get to play, and so coaches have to make hard decisions, and that happens every single year. And some years it’s a bigger storyline and some years it’s not, and some guys play good and some guys don’t. And there’s always some mix of that.
“But when things don’t go your way, it’s very easy to cash out. And so when you see a kid that has been so team-oriented and then to get inserted into the biggest game of his career and perform, it just shows you everything that you need to know about character. Because if you cash out, you don’t roll into the highest competition in the world and have success.
“Whether he had success or not, I knew his character. I knew that he was still working, and I knew he was team-oriented, and I knew he was fighting like hell to be great for the Mountaineers, and that’s why he got his opportunity. That’s why it came back around to him.”
For the season, Wills hit .283 (47-for-166) with two home runs, six doubles, three triples and 23 RBI.
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