Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Rocky Mountain CESU | G17AS00111

Opportunity Information: Apply for G17AS00111

The Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Rocky Mountain CESU opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number G17AS00111) is a discretionary research grant offered by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), specifically through the Fort Collins Science Center (FORT), within the Department of the Interior. It is structured as a cooperative agreement, which typically signals an expectation of active collaboration between the award recipient and USGS scientists or program staff during the project. The program sits under the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category and is associated with CFDA 15.808. USGS anticipated making one award under this announcement, with a maximum award amount (ceiling) of $200,000.

The purpose of the funding is to support a CESU partner in developing spatial and demographic models for wildlife populations that depend on sagebrush, alpine, and grassland ecosystems. While the work is centered primarily on Colorado and Wyoming, the announcement makes it clear that the findings and modeling approach should be relevant across a broader portion of western North America. In practical terms, the funded research is meant to improve how managers and scientists can map where wildlife occur, estimate population performance over time, and understand how those patterns shift across landscapes and through changing conditions.

A major emphasis of the project is on evaluating and disentangling the effects of key, large-scale stressors and land uses that shape these ecosystems. The opportunity highlights energy development, climate change, and grazing and browsing pressure as focal drivers. Grazing pressure refers primarily to livestock use, while browsing is called out in relation to elk. The intent is not only to document these pressures but to build models that can help explain how they influence habitat quality, population dynamics (such as survival and reproduction), and ultimately conservation outcomes. By tying landscape change and management actions to demographic responses, the work aims to provide more decision-relevant tools than simple habitat maps or single-species occurrence models alone.

The announcement also identifies specific wildlife species of conservation concern that illustrate the kinds of management questions USGS wants to address. In sagebrush systems, the sage-grouse is the flagship species, commonly used as an indicator for sagebrush integrity and a frequent driver of land management decisions across the West. In alpine systems, the white-tailed ptarmigan is highlighted, reflecting concerns about climate sensitivity, changing snowpack and vegetation patterns, and the limited extent of alpine habitat. For grassland and cross-ecosystem questions, songbirds are emphasized, which points to broader biodiversity objectives and the need to evaluate how habitat structure, grazing regimes, and climate-related shifts influence bird communities across sagebrush, alpine, and grassland environments.

Eligibility is limited to CESU partners under the Rocky Mountain CESU network, with the listing indicating "Others" and directing applicants to additional eligibility language in the full announcement. The opportunity was posted on July 27, 2017, with an original closing date of August 11, 2017, indicating a relatively short application window. Overall, the funding is intended to produce applied, management-facing science: spatially explicit and demographically grounded models that can help agencies and partners anticipate wildlife responses to development and environmental change, compare conservation or management scenarios, and better target actions to sustain sagebrush, alpine, and grassland ecosystems and the species that depend on them.

• The Department of the Interior, Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Rocky Mountain CESU" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.808.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 27, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 11, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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