Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Great Lakes Northern Forests CESU

The summary for the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Great Lakes Northern Forests CESU grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the Geological Survey, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Great Lakes Northern Forests CESU: The U.S. Geological Survey¿s (USGS) National Wildlife Health Center is offering a funding opportunity to a CESU partner to assist with Sea star wasting disease (SSWD). SSWD comprises a suite of gross morphological abnormalities, including ray twisting, loss of turgor, limb autotomy, formation of lesions, tissue loss and death that affects asteroids (Echinodermata) in several locations worldwide. Since 2013, SSWD has been reported in ~ 20 species on the North American Pacific coast, leading in some locations to >95% reduction in overall biomass of key species (e.g. Pycnopodia helianthoides). The etiology of SSWD is unknown and there is currently no case definition for any species affected. Comparative histology of clinically normal and wasting individuals in North America and elsewhere revealed vacuolized and necrotic outer epidermis and cuticle, and edema and cleft formation between outer epidermis and mutable collagenous tissue. Microbiome (bacterial/archaeal and viral) revealed no consistent associated microorganisms to this condition. However, shifts in subcuticular microbiome structure from predominately aerobic to obligate anaerobic taxa occur during disease progression, and perhaps global warming and acidification play a role.