U.S. Fish and Wildlife Waterbird Habitat Assessment Protocol | F18AS00205

Opportunity Information: Apply for F18AS00205

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Waterbird Habitat Assessment Protocol grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number F18AS00205) is a discretionary cooperative agreement offered by the Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (CFDA 15.678). The project is focused on applied research and management support: developing, refining, and field-testing a standardized habitat assessment protocol that helps National Wildlife Refuge staff evaluate wetland habitat conditions and how well those conditions meet management objectives for migratory waterbirds in two major regions of California and southern Oregon.

The core purpose of the funding is to build and validate a practical survey method for assessing waterbird habitat across refuge wetland units in the Central Valley and the Klamath Basin. The work includes taking an existing pilot survey protocol and improving it based on initial experience, then implementing surveys at multiple refuges to test consistency and usefulness at a larger scale. The targeted refuge network is explicitly defined and includes the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge Complex, San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex, and Kern National Wildlife Refuge Complex. By working across these sites, the project aims to produce a protocol that can support coordinated habitat planning and evaluation across the entire Central Valley and Klamath Basin Zone.

A major deliverable is the collection of standardized field data on vegetation and habitat attributes during surveys. Those measurements are not just descriptive; they feed directly into a quantitative metric called the Seed Production Index (SPI). Partners to the agreement will use the collected habitat and vegetation data to calculate SPI values, which are used to estimate the food value of wetland units for migratory waterbirds. In practical terms, this helps refuge managers compare wetland units, track changes over time, and evaluate whether management actions are improving or reducing food resources available to waterbirds during migration and wintering periods.

Beyond field data collection, the agreement includes building the supporting information infrastructure needed to make the protocol operational and repeatable. That means developing and maintaining a database for storing survey results, along with data analysis and reporting components that translate raw field observations into interpretable outputs such as SPI calculations and summaries relevant to refuge management decisions. The emphasis on database development and reporting indicates the project is intended to produce an end-to-end workflow: survey design, field implementation, data management, analysis, and communication of findings.

Administratively, the opportunity was created on June 26, 2018, with an original closing date of July 3, 2018, and it is explicitly described as a notice of intent to award to The Regents of California. No competition was expected, meaning it was effectively a directed award rather than an open call for proposals. Eligibility is listed for public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, aligning with the intended recipient. The anticipated award structure is a single award (Expected Awards: 1) with an award ceiling of $93,181, supporting a relatively focused, project-specific effort centered on protocol development, multi-refuge field testing, and delivery of usable data products for waterbird habitat management.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the education, environment, information and statistics, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "U.S. Fish and Wildlife Waterbird Habitat Assessment Protocol" 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 26, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 03, 2018 This is a notice of intent to award to The Regents of California. No competition is expected. Do not respond.. (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 $93,181.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for F18AS00205

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