New Mexico - Rio Puerco Mammal Studies - Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU) | L16AS00108

Opportunity Information: Apply for L16AS00108

The New Mexico - Rio Puerco Mammal Studies - Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU) funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number L16AS00108) is a discretionary Bureau of Land Management (BLM) cooperative agreement aimed at improving the quality, consistency, and timeliness of mammal data for the Rio Puerco Field Office in New Mexico. The project sits in the natural resources category (CFDA 15.231) and is intended to support updated, systematic inventory, survey, and monitoring work focused on the field office's mammalian fauna. The main problem the grant is trying to solve is that existing mammal information for the area is fragmented, collected intermittently over decades, and in many cases is now too old to reliably reflect current species distributions or population conditions.

The opportunity highlights a history of past work that, while valuable, is limited in scope or outdated. A small mammal inventory was completed in 1979 to support habitat management planning. Bat work at five sites using acoustic and physical survey methods was conducted in 1998. Prairie dog efforts have been sporadic, including coarse surveys around El Malpais in the early 2000s through about 2007, with additional prairie dog population identification and delineation occurring on a case-by-case basis between 2009 and 2016 as incidental information emerged from other field activities. Surveys for big game species have largely been handled by the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, primarily for game management rather than comprehensive BLM land health or biodiversity objectives. Taken together, these efforts leave the BLM with an incomplete and uneven picture of what mammals are present, where they occur, and how populations may be changing across time.

This cooperative agreement is designed to produce current and consistent baseline information and monitoring capability for mammals in the Rio Puerco Field Office, which can then be used to inform land use planning, habitat management decisions, and future conservation or restoration priorities. While the notice does not spell out a detailed statement of work beyond the general need for updated mammal study, the emphasis is clearly on building a more systematic approach than the piecemeal surveys of the past, likely involving standardized field methods and repeatable monitoring approaches that can be applied across multiple sites and years.

Administratively, the award is expected to be made through the Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU) framework, with an established 17.5 percent indirect cost rate applied under CESU rules. The opportunity lists eligibility as unrestricted, anticipates a single award, and provides up to 100,000 dollars as the award ceiling. Key dates included a posting/creation date of June 9, 2016 and an original closing date of August 9, 2016, indicating it was a time-limited solicitation for a single partner to carry out this focused mammal study effort in coordination with the BLM.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "New Mexico - Rio Puerco Mammal Studies - Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.231.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-06-09.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2016-08-09. (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 $100,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

Apply for L16AS00108

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