Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, South Florida-Caribbean CESU

The summary for the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, South Florida-Caribbean 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, South Florida-Caribbean CESU: The U.S. Geological Surveys (USGS) Florida Integrated Science Center (FISC) in Ft. Lauderdale conducts ecological and hydrological research and monitoring in support of the Everglades Restoration project throughout South Florida, in conjunction with its Federal, State, and local partners. Information advances understanding of the south Florida ecosystem, which contributes to decision-making during the restoration effort. The Everglades National Park Field Station of USGS-FISC is offering a cooperative-agreement opportunity to universities with the capability to conduct research on ecological topics related to marine and estuarine habitats and faunal communities. Biologists at the field station primarily, but not exclusively, conduct research in freshwater and estuarine habitats in south Florida national-park areas. Estuarine research interests include (but are not limited to) developing and testing sampling methods for epibenthic fish and invertebrates, quantifying faunal relationships with benthic vegetation and salinity, evaluating sampling protocols in a monitoring environment, and long-term studies in south Florida. This research opportunity involves cooperating in the development and implementation of a monitoring program to assess the status and trend of seagrass/algae fish and invertebrate communities in south Florida estuaries downstream of the Everglades. Upstream hydrologic modifications related to restoration of the Everglades are expected to impact quantity, timing and distribution of freshwater inflows and seagrass habitats in downstream estuaries. The main objectives of this agreement are designed to answer questions critical to the assessment of restoration progress and/or success. There are three research tasks that are contained within the current cooperative program: Task 1 - This task involves adapting previously established 1-m2 throw-trap sampling protocols (faunal sampling, linked habitat characterization) for western Florida Bay and southern Biscayne Bay to the much wider range of shallow (< 6m) seagrass and algal habitats present across south Florida estuaries. The task requires field assistance, diving support and laboratory analysis of samples. Task 2 - The second task is to conduct routine field sampling in up to 19 south Florida estuaries where impacts from Everglades restoration may affect the salinity regime or benthic vegetation. The task requires field assistance, diving support and laboratory analysis of samples. Task 3 - The third task involves assessing the relationship of fish and invertebrate species dynamics and community structure in nearshore estuaries to habitat and salinity within the context of evaluating the impact of changing upstream hydrology related to restoration of the Everglades. This task involves developing a pre-restoration baseline data set and assessing variability of critical faunal elements in relation to habitat and salinity. Initially, the pink shrimp (Farfantepenaeus duorarum) is the species targeted for study but other seagrass-associated shrimp (penaeid and caridean) and fish will also be investigated. This task requires field assistance and diving support, statistical analysis of current and long-term baseline data, and report production. Specific objectives for each task are as follows: Task 1 - The 1-m2 throw-trap is an established quantitative device used to sample seagrass-associated fish and invertebrates in south Florida. Using the 1-m2 throw-trap has at least two significant strengths; (1) high capture efficiency for animals enclosed can be achieved by repeated sampling of the enclosed area and (2) resulting animal samples can be closely tied to habitat. Both strengths are critical when monitoring fish and invertebrates in seagrass/algae beds. The throw-trap is an open ended 1-m2 aluminum box, 45-cm deep; with panels of weighted nylon netting attached at the top of the trap large enough to cover the throw-trap in water deeper than 45cm. SCUBA (surface-supplied hookah) is used to clear the trap of animals in water deeper than about 1 m. Multiple passes of a 1-m wide framed sweep-net are used to clear the throw-trap of animals. The number of passes of the sweep-net controls the sampling efficiency of the throw-trap; previously in long-term throw-trap sampling in western Florida Bay and southern Biscayne Bay 95% was established as the standard sampling efficiency (Robblee et al 1991; Browder et al 2005). The first objective of this task is to experimentally estimate the number of passes of the sweep-net required to achieve 95% sampling efficiency for fish, shrimp and crabs. A second objective is to compare a traditional harvest-density method (Robblee et al 1991) and a modified Braun-Blanquet cover-abundance method (Braun-Blanquet 1932; Fourqurean et al 2002) for characterizing seagrass/algae habitat. The harvest-density method involves removing seagrass and algae from within a quadrat adjacent to the throw-trap, separating vegetation to species and estimating seagrass density, canopy height and species weights, etc. Braun-Blanquet cover-abundance is a technique where cover is visually estimated for seagrass and algal species within .25-m2 quadrats located in the vicinity of the throw-trap; cover scores by species are: .1 = individual, .5 = sparse, 1 = 0-5%, 2 = 5-25%, 3 = 25-50%, 4 = 50-75%, 5 = 75-100%. The first 3 categories are essentially abundance estimates while scores of 2and above are estimates of cover. Task 2 - The objective of Task 2 is to sample epibenthic fish, shrimp and crabs twice annually at the end of the dry and wet season in south Florida, April/May and September/October, respectively, employing the throw-trap sampling protocols developed in Task 1. A single 1-m2 throw-trap sample, randomly located, is collected from within each cell of a 30-cell grid established at each of up to 19 sampling locations. The 30-cell grid has been established in coordination with a concurrent SAV monitoring project. Thirty samples from each of the 19 locations constitute a collection for a total of 570 samples each season. Sample locations include: Location Center Longitude Center Latitude Rankin Lake -80.80405 25.11816 Whipray Basin -80.76138 25.07375 Calusa Key Basin -80.67040 25.06035 Eagle Key Basin -80.61068 25.12563 Crane Key Basin -80.64597 25.00943 Duck Key Basin -80.49211 25.18840 Whitewater Bay -80.97169 25.28950 Oyster Bay -81.07477 25.32687 Ponce de Leon Bay -81.13663 25.36140 Lostmans River -81.21365 25.54067 Barnes Sound -80.38268 25.23558 Manatee Bay -80.41759 25.24600 Card Sound -80.30152 25.34343 South Black Point -80.31754 25.48800 North Black Point -80.29141 25.57598 Port of Miami -80.17312 25.75857 North Biscayne Bay -80.15813 25.82800 Rabbit Key Basin -80.86948 24.99068 Johnson Key Basin -80.92021 25.05295 Task 3 - The long-term purpose of this research is to assess the impact of upstream hydrologic change due to restoration activities in the Everglades on fish and invertebrate population dynamics and communities in downstream estuaries in south Florida. The first objective of this task is to compile the existing throw-trap-based baseline data set available for the study domain (the southwest mangrove coast including Whitewater Bay, Florida Bay, and Biscayne Bay including Manatee Bay and Barnes and Card Sounds) from the literature including data developed in Task 2 and define the baseline condition.. A second objective is to evaluate and reconcile differences in estimates of abundance, community composition and variability resulting from differences in sampling design between the two existing long-term studies using the throw-trap, western Florida Bay (Robblee et al 1991) and southern Biscayne Bay (Browder et al 2005), and the 30-cell sampling design used in Task 2. These studies differed using a repeated measure design and a random stratified design, respectively, with one result being that sampling effort across gradients of habitat differed when compared to the 30-cell sampling design. Concurrent sampling with the 30-cell sampling design of Task 2 and sampling using the original study sampling design will be used to establish continuity in the baseline data set and an understanding of possible differences in variability, the latter being a critical element in assessing change in relation to restoration. The third objective of this task is to develop statistical and analytical approaches for detecting change in fish and invertebrate abundance and community in relation to the baseline condition with which to assess the impact of upstream hydrologic modifications related to Everglades restoration.
Federal Grant Title: Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, South Florida-Caribbean CESU
Federal Agency Name: Geological Survey
Grant Categories: Science and Technology
Type of Opportunity: Discretionary
Funding Opportunity Number: 07HQPA0043
Type of Funding: Cooperative Agreement
CFDA Numbers: 15.808
CFDA Descriptions: U.S. Geological Survey_ Research and Data Collection
Current Application Deadline: No deadline provided
Original Application Deadline: Sep 07, 2007
Posted Date: Aug 28, 2007
Creation Date: Aug 28, 2007
Archive Date: Oct 07, 2007
Total Program Funding: $25,000
Maximum Federal Grant Award: $25,000
Minimum Federal Grant Award: $25,000
Expected Number of Awards: 1
Cost Sharing or Matching: No
Applicants Eligible for this Grant
Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
Additional Information on Eligibility
This financial assistance opportunity is being issued under a Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program; the South Florida-Caribbean CESU. CESUs are partnerships that provide research, technical assistance, and education. Eligible recipients must be a participating partner of the South Florida-Caribbean Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program.
Grant Announcement Contact
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CONTRACT SPECIALIST
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