Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Gulf Coast Mountain | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the name of this funding opportunity?

The opportunity is titled "Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Gulf Coast Mountain" and is a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) discretionary funding announcement.

What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FON)?

The Funding Opportunity Number is G11AS20076.

Which federal agency is offering this award?

The award is offered by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

What type of award is being offered?

The announcement supports a single cooperative agreement for science and technology research.

How many awards were expected?

Only one award was expected, indicating the agency intended a single, coordinated project rather than multiple smaller awards.

What is the estimated total funding amount?

The estimated total funding was $86,000.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity stated there was no cost sharing or matching requirement.

When was the opportunity posted?

It was posted on August 4, 2011.

What was the application closing date?

The closing date was August 15, 2011.

Is this opportunity still active?

No. The listing was archived on November 3, 2011.

What CFDA program is associated with this opportunity?

The opportunity sits under CFDA 15.808, listed as "USGS Research and Data Collection."

What is the program framework for this opportunity?

It was issued through the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) framework, specifically the Gulf Coast Mountain CESU network.

Who was eligible to apply?

Proposals were limited to organizations that are already participating partners in the Gulf Coast Mountain CESU network. This means it was not open to all applicants; eligibility was restricted to the CESU partner community (often universities, nonprofits, and other collaborating institutions formally part of that CESU).

What is the general research topic being funded?

The research focus is on understanding the diet of APC chicks and post-release APC individuals at the APC National Wildlife Refuge (APCNWR), including how diet differs across time and what drives observed changes.

What core questions is the project expected to address?

The project is expected to document what food sources APC chicks used historically and what they use now, and to use that information to evaluate whether post-release animals shift diets after leaving captivity. A central question is whether diet switching is influenced by seasonal conditions and year-to-year variation.

Why is time (seasonal and year-to-year variation) important in this study?

The description emphasizes determining whether diet changes are driven by seasonal conditions and annual variability, implying the study should be designed to detect temporal effects rather than representing only a single snapshot in time.

What diet shift is highlighted as a key scientific issue?

The announcement highlights an apparent shift from a captive diet to a wild diet. Captive APCs are described as receiving a mixture of C4 and C3 plants, while animals at APCNWR appear to show diets dominated by plants and insects with C3 signatures.

What do C3 and C4 refer to in the opportunity description?

C3 and C4 refer to different plant photosynthetic pathways that produce distinct stable carbon isotope patterns. The opportunity points to these differences as a way to track dietary sources through stable isotope signatures.

What analytical approach does the announcement implicitly point toward?

Because C3 and C4 plants have distinct stable carbon isotope patterns, the announcement effectively points to stable isotope ecology (including carbon and nitrogen stable isotope work) as a main analytical approach.

What management-relevant question is the study intended to clarify?

The study is intended to determine whether the observed shift toward C3-dominated signatures is mainly due to the animals selecting different foods when given the chance (choice) or due to what is available on the refuge (availability). This distinction matters for release programs, habitat management, and supplemental feeding strategies aimed at improving post-release outcomes.

What types of food sources should be characterized?

The opportunity calls for characterizing the carbon and nitrogen content of selected plant materials and insect biomass that APCs use at APCNWR.

What types of animal samples are referenced for linking diet to tissue signals?

The description references using isotope profiles obtained from blood and feather samples of individuals currently present at the refuge.

How are blood and feather samples used differently in diet inference?

As described, blood generally reflects more recent dietary intake, while feathers reflect diet at the time the feathers were grown. Using both helps detect diet composition and potential shifts over time.

How is the study expected to connect food sources to APC diet?

Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope data from food items (plants and insects) can be compared to isotope ratios in APC tissues (blood and feathers). Pairing measured isotope signatures from potential foods with tissue samples can help infer diet composition, detect shifts over time, and evaluate the relative contribution of insects versus plants and the role of C3 versus C4 sources.

Does the opportunity specify where the study takes place?

Yes. The work is focused on APC chicks and post-release individuals at the APC National Wildlife Refuge (APCNWR).

What does it mean that the award mechanism is a cooperative agreement?

The description notes that a cooperative agreement usually signals that USGS expects substantial involvement during the project, such as collaboration on study design, coordination on sampling at the refuge, data sharing expectations, or integration with other monitoring and management activities.

Where was the official listing available?

The official listing was available through Grants.gov.

Who is the point of contact for access issues?

The point of contact provided for access issues was Faith Graves. Phone: 703-648-7356. Email: fgraves@usgs.gov.