Migratory Bird Monitoring, Assessment and Conservation | F17AS00238

Opportunity Information: Apply for F17AS00238

The Migratory Bird Monitoring, Assessment and Conservation grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number F17AS00238) is a discretionary, single-source cooperative agreement that the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Northeast Region planned to award to the Massachusetts Audubon Society in Cummaquid, Massachusetts. Rather than being a broadly competed funding call, the notice functions mainly as a formal public announcement that FWS intended to issue one award to a specific nonprofit partner. The anticipated project budget is up to $30,000, with one expected award, and it falls under CFDA 15.655 in the Science and Technology/Research and Development activity category.

The main purpose of the award is to develop and promote Best Management Practices (BMPs) for predator (predation) management aimed at improving nesting success for key breeding shorebirds in North America, particularly along the U.S. Atlantic coast. Predator management is highlighted here because excessive nest and chick predation is a major limiting factor for many beach-nesting shorebirds, and coordinating effective approaches across jurisdictions can be difficult without shared guidance. The work is framed as a response to priorities identified by the Atlantic Flyway Shorebird Initiative (AFSI), a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-coordinated partnership effort involving more than 50 partners that seeks to improve conservation outcomes for shorebirds across the Atlantic Flyway.

The project specifically targets four coastal temperate breeding shorebird species that AFSI prioritizes for predation-related management actions: the American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus), Wilson's Plover (Charadrius wilsonia), Snowy Plover (Charadrius nivosus), and the Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus). The Piping Plover is also noted as federally threatened, which raises the conservation stakes and ties the work to additional federal protection obligations. By focusing on these focal species, the project aims to produce practical, transferable guidance that can be applied at breeding sites where predation pressure affects population performance.

AFSI's predation-focused implementation approach is translated into three concrete strategies that the award would support. First, Massachusetts Audubon would help develop and promote BMPs that outline effective, appropriate predator management methods for shorebird breeding areas. Second, the project would help implement predator management at representative demonstration sites, meaning real-world locations where practices can be tested, refined, and showcased for other managers. Third, the effort includes outreach and training support, coordinated with affiliated projects, so that the resulting BMPs and lessons learned can be adopted more consistently by agencies, nonprofits, and other partners working up and down the coast. The overall intended outcome is improved range-wide coordination and stronger, more consistent effectiveness of predation management for these shorebirds along the Atlantic coast.

Administratively, the instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates substantial involvement by the federal agency during the life of the project compared to a standard grant. Eligibility in the notice is framed around nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education), but the notice makes clear that this particular action was intended as a sole-source award to Mass Audubon. The opportunity was created on June 6, 2017, with an original closing date of June 12, 2017, reflecting its limited, announcement-style nature rather than an extended competitive application window.

The legal and policy foundation for the funding and work is tied to multiple federal wildlife authorities. Funding is provided under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 (as amended) and the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act. The notice also emphasizes FWS's responsibility to protect migratory bird species under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, and notes that additional protections apply when species are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. In practical terms, this grant supports on-the-ground conservation planning and coordination work that helps FWS and its partners meet those statutory responsibilities by improving management actions that can directly increase shorebird reproductive success.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Migratory Bird Monitoring, Assessment and Conservation" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.655.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 06, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 12, 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 $30,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

Apply for F17AS00238

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