The state of West Virginia is home to 72 wild mammal species. Four – the Virginia big-eared bat, the Indiana bat, the West Virginia northern flying squirrel and the extinct eastern cougar – are federally listed as endangered. Several additional species are rare in the state and warrant close monitoring.
Some mammals which have thrived despite human disturbance include the opossum, which is more abundant and more widely distributed due to human activities. Also doing well are mammals that prefer farm and early successional habitats. The coyote is expanding its range eastward in the United States and now occurs throughout the state.
Many examples of West Virginia's present and former megafauna are on display at the West Virginia State Wildlife Center, a small zoo featuring native animals.
List The following letters indicate the likelihood of finding each animal in West Virginia:
C Common Can be commonly seen in suitable habitat within current range. U Uncommon Seldom seen because habitat restricted and/or behavior secretive. R Rare Not often present even in suitable habitat. RI Reintroduced Reintroduced after being extirpated. I Introduced Not native to West Virginia, introduced by humans X Extirpated No longer present in West Virginia.
In addition, the International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies one of these species as critically endangered (), two as endangered (), three as vulnerable (), and five as near-threatened ().
Order Didelphimorphia (opossums) Family Didelphidae (opossums) Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) C
Order Eulipotyphla (shrews, moles and relatives) Family Soricidae (shrews)
Northern short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda) C North American least shrew (Cryptotis parva) R Cinereus shrew (Sorex cinereus) C Long-tailed shrew (Sorex dispar) U Smoky shrew (Sorex fumeus) U American pygmy shrew (Sorex hoyi) U Southeastern shrew (Sorex longirostris) U American water shrew (Sorex palustris) R
Family Talpidae (moles) Star-nosed mole (Condylura cristata) U Hairy-tailed mole (Parascalops breweri) C Eastern mole (Scalopus aquaticus) U
Order Chiroptera (bats) Family Vespertilionidae (vesper bats) Rafinesque's big-eared bat (Corynorhinus rafinesquii) R Townsend's big-eared bat (Corynorhinus townsendii) Virginia big-eared bat (C. t. virginianus) R, Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) C Silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) U Eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) C Hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) U Gray bat (Myotis grisescens) R, Eastern small-footed myotis (Myotis leibii) R, Little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) C, Northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis) U, Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis) R, Arroyo-Cabrales, J. & Ospina-Garces, S. 2016. Myotis sodalis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T14136A22053184. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/14136/22053184. Downloaded on 29 October 2018. Evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis) R Tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) C,
Order Rodentia (rodents) Family Sciuridae (squirrels) Northern flying squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus) R Virginia northern flying squirrel (G. s. fuscus) R Southern flying squirrel (Glaucomys volans) C Groundhog (Marmota monax) C Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) C Fox squirrel (Sciurus niger) C Eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) C American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) C
Family Castoridae (beavers) North American beaver (Castor canadensis) C, RI
Family Dipodidae (jumping mice) Woodland jumping mouse (Napaeozapus insignis) C Meadow jumping mouse (Zapus hudsonius) U
Family Cricetidae (New World mice and rats) Eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) C Rock vole (Microtus chrotorrhinus) U Prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) R Woodland vole (Microtus pinetorum) C Southern red-backed vole (Clethrionomys gapperi) C Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister) U, Linzey, A.V. & NatureServe (Hammerson, G., Whittaker, J.C. & Norris, S.J.) 2008. Neotoma magister. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2008: e.T14581A4446084. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/14581/4446084. Downloaded on 29 October 2018. Golden mouse (Ochrotomys nuttalli) U Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) C Eastern deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) C White-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) C Eastern harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys humulis) R Southern bog lemming (Synaptomys cooperi) U
Family Muridae (Old World mice and rats) House mouse (Mus musculus) I Brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) I Black rat (Rattus rattus) I
Family Erethizontidae (New World porcupines) North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) R
Order Lagomorpha (rabbits, hares and pikas) Family Leporidae (rabbits and hares) Snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) U Appalachian cottontail (Sylvilagus obscurus) U, Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) C
Order Carnivora (carnivorans) Family Canidae (dogs, wolves and foxes) Coyote, (Canis latrans) C Eastern coyote (C. l. ssp.) C Eastern wolf (Canis lycaon) X Red wolf (Canis rufus) X, Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) C Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) C
Family Ursidae (bears) American black bear (Ursus americanus) U
Family Procyonidae (raccoons and relatives) Raccoon (Procyon lotor) C
Family Mustelidae (otters, weasels and relatives) North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) RI Least weasel (Mustela nivalis) U American ermine (Mustela richardsonii) U Long-tailed weasel (Neogale frenata) U American mink (Neogale vison) U Fisher (Pekania pennanti) RI
Family Mephitidae (skunks) Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) C Eastern spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius) U,
Family Felidae (cats) Bobcat (Lynx rufus) U Cougar, (Puma concolor) X Eastern cougar (P. c. couguar)
Order Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates) Family Suidae (pigs) Wild boar (Sus scrofa) I
Family Cervidae (deer) White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) RI Elk, (Cervus canadensis) RI Eastern elk (C. c. canadensis) Rocky Mountain elk (C. c. nelsoni) I
Family Bovidae (cattle, goats and relatives) American bison (Bison bison) X, Aune, K., Jørgensen, D. & Gates, C. 2017. Bison bison (errata version published in 2018). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017: e.T2815A123789863. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/2815/123789863. Downloaded on 29 October 2018. Plains bison (B. b. bison) X
Introduced species
During colonial times, the black rat, brown rat and house mouse all came to North America, including the future West Virginia, with European settlers and traders.
Wild boar European wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) were introduced into south-eastern West Virginia in 1971 as an additional large game animal for hunting. Populations are located in the counties of Boone, Logan, Raleigh and Wyoming. Since the late 1990s the population of wild boar has been decreasing, primarily due to a combination of habitat loss and competition from the expanding populations of native black bears and whitetail deer.
Recent extirpations Eastern timber wolfThe eastern timber wolf (Canis lycaon), roamed throughout the state in pre-settlement days. Bounties were paid on their "scalps" in West Virginia through the late 1890s with the last recorded one being killed by Stofer Hamrick in Randolph County in January 1900.Brooks, Fred E. (1911), "The Mammals of West Virginia", West Virginia State Board of Agriculture Quarterly Report; 20; 9–30.
Red wolfOnce native to all of West Virginia, the red wolf (Canis rufus) was extirpated from the state not too long after its relative, the eastern wolf.
North American cougarThe last officially accepted wild cougar kills in both Virginia and West Virginia were in the 1880s and the animal – eastern cougar, or mountain lion, puma or panther (Puma concolor couguar) – was considered totally exterminated in West Virginia by 1900. In 1936, however, came a last officially confirmed record of cougar tracks in the state; by a Smithsonian worker, near Cranberry Glades in Pocahontas County.Deurbrouck, Jo (2007), Stalked by a Mountain Lion: Fear, Fact, and the Uncertain Future of Cougars in America, Globe Pequot, pg 93.Kellog, Remington (1937), Annotated list of West Virginia Mammals, Proceedings of the United States National Museum, 84:443–479.This does not include an incident in the 1960s or '70s in Pocahontas County: According to WVDNR District Biologist Ray Knotts, two mountain lions were sighted. One was killed and one was captured. It was determined that the two large cats were "quite friendly" and had been raised in captivity. Recently, the eastern cougar was federally listed as "endangered" in West Virginia and sporadic, unconfirmed accounts of its presence (tracks and sightings) continued to be reported. P. c. couguar was deemed to be extirpated by a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service evaluation released in 2011.USF&WS (2 March 2011), "U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Concludes Eastern Cougar Extinct" [Press release].
BisonThe American bison (Bison bison), was once common in West Virginia, roaming in large herds over the entire state. Numerous place names in Pennsylvania and West Virginia attest to how frequently these animals were encountered in the state. In the late 18th century, European hunters and explorers in the Trans-Allegheny region of the state reported seeing sizable populations, especially along the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers. These herds had beaten down numerous traces or paths between salt licks. (Present day Putnam County (formed in 1848) in particular had been cut by bison trails, as the animals moved to and from the Ohio River. The county's oldest town, Buffalo, is named for them.
Many of these paths became the Indian "roads" later used by the pioneering European settlers. Many decades later, the same bison paths would become the routes followed by early turnpikes and government road systems. Dr. Thomas Walker recorded that 13 bison were killed during his 1743 expedition of the area west of the Alleghenies. Although valued as a source of food by European settlers, many of them engaged in the wanton killing of bison as a sport. Walker noted that, "game in these parts and would have been of much greater advantage to the inhabitants than it has been if the hunters had not killed the Buffaloes for diversion."
Bison in the east were rarely seen by 1800, one was killed near Charleston in 1815, but no more were reported until 1825 when one was killed at Valley Head, the source of the Tygart River in Randolph County. It had been chased from Webster County by dogs.
Recent reintroductions Virginia (southern) white-tail deerThis subspecies (Odocoileus virginianus virginianus) of white-tail deer originally ranged over all of West Virginia, but was nearly exterminated within the state due to over-hunting. By 1890, the white-tail deer population of West Virginia was officially reported as "near zero".Trefethen, James B., "The Return of the White-tailed Deer" ; American Heritage, February 1970; Volume 21, Issue 2. As hunting regulations were enacted, law enforcement personnel hired, game refuges established and restocking started, the deer population gradually was reestablished. In January 1930, eight deer procured from Michigan were released in the Monongahela National Forest near Parsons. Between 1937 and 1939, a total of 17 more deer were released in the Flatrock-Roaring Plains area of Tucker County (DeGarmo 1949). These 25 deer are the only recorded deer releases in Tucker County.Lesser, Walter A. and Jack I. Cromer, Unpublished MS: Historical Review of Wildlife Management in Canaan Valley and Surrounding Area , West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. Today, this animal is prolific throughout the state.