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McGill, Dave

Professor/Extension Specialist—Forest Resources Management

My forestry path began in the chaparral of the coast ranges in California (B.S. Natural Resources Management, Cal Poly, SLO). It took me to the Sahel in Niger, West Africa, then on to the deep woods of Wisconsin (MS. Forestry, University of Wisconsin—Madison) then on to Penn’s Woods (Ph.D. Forest Resources, Penn State) and finally to the woodlands of West Virginia where I began as a research scientist at Westvaco Corporation in Greenbrier County. I’ve been at WVU since 2001 and my focus as a forestry extension specialist is to educate people about forests and woodlands. I work collaboratively with other individuals and conservation organizations to provide education for landowners to discover ways they can work with their properties to create their “ideal” woodlands. I team teach the global forest resources course (FOR425) and specialize in tree and shrub identification trainings, both to university students and adult audiences. My most popular outreach workshops are winter tree ID, shiitake mushroom production, and the “Woods and Wildlife” seminar that I teach alongside our wildlife extension specialist. My research has evolved over time from silviculture focusing on invasive species control to exploring motivations of landowners. Recent research has explored gender and property management, landowner willingness to work across boundaries, educational choice and motivations for attending workshops, and landowner perspectives of complex timber sales.

Publications

  • Heubner, C.D. and McGill, D.W. In Press. The Importance of Disturbance versus Physiography in Defining Vegetation Composition and Predicting Possible Successional Trajectories. Castanea XX:XX.
  • Heubner, C.D., Regula A.E., and McGill, D.W. 2018. Germination, survival, and early growth of three invasive plants in response to five forest management regimes common to US northeastern deciduous forests. Forest Ecology and Management 425: 100-118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2018.05.037.
  • Deng, J., McGill, D., Arbogast, D., Maumbe, K. (2016). Stakeholders' Perceptions of Tourism Development In Appalachian Forest Heritage Area. Tourism Review International, 20(4), 235-253.
  • Fulton, J. B., Merriam, E. R., Petty, J. T., Grushecky, S. T., Harouff, S., Hartman, K. J., McGill, D. (2015). Natural and anthropogenic controls over suspended sediments within a mountainous Appalachian watershed: implications for watershed restoration. International Journal of Forest Engineering , 26(1), 24-35.
  • McCuen, M., McGill, D., Arano, K., and & Owen, S. (2013). West Virginia Woodland Welcome Wagon: Design, implementation, and evaluation in three priority areas. Journal of Extension, [Online], 51(4) Article RIB5.
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