Impact of Grazing Regimes on Nesting Success of Sagebrush Obligate Songbirds | F17AS00249

Opportunity Information: Apply for F17AS00249

The Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service posted a discretionary cooperative agreement opportunity titled "Impact of Grazing Regimes on Nesting Success of Sagebrush Obligate Songbirds" (Funding Opportunity Number F17AS00249). The project sits at the intersection of natural resources management and wildlife conservation, focusing specifically on how different livestock grazing approaches in sagebrush ecosystems affect both vegetation conditions and the reproductive performance of songbirds that depend on sagebrush habitats.

The selected awardee is expected to carry out the full scope of an applied field research and monitoring effort. That includes coordinating logistics and partners as needed, conducting on-the-ground field work, collecting and managing data, performing analyses, and delivering written reporting. The core purpose is to evaluate and compare the influence of three grazing regimes within sagebrush habitat, using a set of linked ecological indicators that connect grazing management to habitat quality and bird nesting outcomes.

On the vegetation and habitat side, the work centers on measuring changes that grazing can drive in sagebrush plant communities and the resources they provide. The study specifically calls for assessing seed availability, which is a key food resource and a proxy for plant reproductive output and site productivity. It also emphasizes bunchgrass response, since native bunchgrasses often provide important structure and function in sagebrush systems, including ground cover and resistance to invasive species pressures in some contexts. Another required metric is potential nesting cover, meaning the amount and configuration of vegetation that could conceal or protect nests, as well as recruitment of desired plant species, which speaks to whether the plant community is regenerating in a direction consistent with management goals. In addition, the awardee must characterize overall plant community composition and structure, capturing how grazing regimes may shift species makeup, vegetation height and density, and the broader habitat architecture that influences wildlife use.

On the wildlife side, the project requires documenting how these grazing regimes relate to the abundance of sagebrush-obligate songbirds, along with nest density and nest success. In practical terms, this typically means surveying bird populations in study areas, locating and monitoring nests, and quantifying outcomes such as whether nests produce fledglings, while linking those outcomes back to the vegetation and resource measurements collected under each grazing treatment. The emphasis on "sagebrush-obligate" species indicates the target birds are those strongly associated with sagebrush ecosystems, making them useful indicators for evaluating whether grazing management is maintaining or improving sagebrush-dependent habitat conditions.

Administratively, the opportunity was open to unrestricted applicants (any entity type, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full notice), and it anticipated a single award with an award ceiling of $35,602. The opportunity was created on June 12, 2017 and originally closed on June 19, 2017, with the notice indicating that the recipient had already been selected at the time of posting. The activity aligns with CFDA 15.678 and is categorized under Environment, Information and Statistics, and Natural Resources, reflecting its applied conservation and resource management focus.

Overall, the grant opportunity funds a targeted, management-relevant study designed to produce actionable information about how grazing practices in sagebrush landscapes influence plant community dynamics, nesting habitat characteristics, and the nesting success of sagebrush-dependent songbirds. The expected deliverables are not just raw data, but a complete chain of coordination, field monitoring, analysis, and reporting that can inform grazing management decisions aimed at sustaining both healthy sagebrush vegetation and successful bird reproduction.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the environment, information and statistics, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Impact of Grazing Regimes on Nesting Success of Sagebrush Obligate Songbirds" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.678.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 12, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 19, 2017 THE RECIPINET HAS BEEN SELECTED. (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 $35,602.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for F17AS00249

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