ELK were reintroduced to west virginia starting in 2016, following extirpation in the 1800?s because of unregulated harvest and habitat alterations

The U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Region 5 awarded a $306,878 formula grant to the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources under the Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education and Safety program (CFDA 15.611) effective January 1, 2026, through June 30, 2028. The grant supports research and habitat management initiatives designed to reduce meningeal brainworm (Parelaphostrongylus tenuis) transmission risk to West Virginia's reintroduced elk population. Specifically, the funding enables evaluation of habitat management techniques—including prescribed burning, mowing, and fertilizer application—to reduce gastropod abundance and associated infection prevalence, while identifying environmental conditions that correlate with high gastropod densities and brainworm infection rates.

West Virginia University serves as the sub-awardee under this grant, conducting gastro brainworm research in elk through a sub-award effective August 14, 2025. The research will generate critical data on the timescale of gastropod population responses to management interventions, enabling the Division of Natural Resources to establish evidence-based treatment reapplication schedules and optimize habitat management strategies to support the continued viability of West Virginia's elk herd—which provides substantial economic, recreational, and cultural benefits to the state.

Ensuring the continued growth of this reintroduced herd is a priority because of the economic, recreational, and cultural benefits provided by ELK in the state. Although the ELK population has continued to grow since the initial reintroduction efforts, meningeal brainworm (parelaphostrongylus tenuis) has been a notable source of mortality. The primary hosts of p. Tenuis are white-tailed deer (odocoileus virginianus), but transmission to other ungulates, including ELK, occurs via ingestion of intermediate gastropod hosts. When infected with p. Tenuis, ELK can experience neurological symptoms which can sometimes lead to mortality. Previous research has found that gastropod densities and infection prevalence are related to environmental conditions including soil moisture and understory vegetation composition. The west virginia division of natural resources (wvdnr) is interested in evaluating habitat management techniques that could be used to reduce gastropod abundance and the risk of p. Tenuis transmission to ELK. For example, prescribed burning or mowing could alter microhabitat structure for gastropods, whereas fertilizer application could change the PH and moisture of the soil such that localized areas are unsuitable for gastropod persistence. Additionally, understanding the timescale of gastropod responses to management would allow managers to know how frequently to RE-apply treatments to effectively reduce the risk of brainworm infection for ELK. In addition to active management, IT could be useful to identify environmental conditions (e.g. slope, aspect, vegetation type) that result in high abundances of gastropods, or high prevalence of p. Tenuis infection