Opportunity Information: Apply for F17AS00156
The grant opportunity titled "Conservation Delivery at the Nexus of Game Management and Landscape Ecology: Strategic Use of Deer Management Cooperatives in Habitat Networks" is a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Department of the Interior) discretionary grant focused on using Deer Management Cooperatives (DMCs) as a practical, landscape-scale conservation tool. The central idea is to examine how groups of neighboring landowners and hunters who coordinate deer management across property lines can be mapped, measured, and evaluated as part of broader habitat network and landscape conservation planning efforts. Rather than treating deer management as something that happens parcel by parcel, this project looks at how coordinated management units fit into the larger spatial pattern of habitats and how that pattern can be leveraged to deliver conservation outcomes.
The award is intended for the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) to work in partnership with the University of Georgia, state wildlife agencies, and deer hunters. Using data from six states (Michigan, Texas, Missouri, New York, Georgia, and Florida), the project would evaluate the spatial extent, arrangement, and configuration of existing DMCs across the landscape. In practical terms, this means identifying where cooperatives are located, how large they are, how their boundaries line up with habitat features and land ownership patterns, how connected or fragmented they are, and how they sit within broader habitat networks. The goal is to quantify whether and how DMCs can function as conservation planning building blocks within a habitat network approach, where connectivity and landscape configuration are key considerations.
A major deliverable is identifying what makes a DMC "successful" and turning that into measurable parameters. Success is defined in both human and biological terms: hunter success and satisfaction on one side, and deer herd management outcomes and deer health on the other. This implies the project would examine indicators such as harvest outcomes, achievement of herd objectives (for example, sex ratios or age structure goals where applicable), and deer condition or health metrics, alongside social metrics like hunter satisfaction and perceived effectiveness of cooperative management. By quantifying these factors, the project aims to move beyond anecdotal claims and provide evidence-based characteristics that can predict when a cooperative approach is likely to work well.
The opportunity also places heavy emphasis on translating findings into usable guidance for practitioners. The project is expected to develop educational and outreach materials such as manuals, webinars, and publications aimed at state, federal, and non-governmental natural resource professionals. The intent is to help agencies and partners understand how to implement and support DMCs in a way that aligns with landscape-level conservation planning, including how to incorporate cooperative boundaries and management practices into broader planning frameworks, prioritization exercises, and habitat network designs.
Finally, the grant explicitly extends beyond deer by requiring an assessment of DMC benefits to other game and non-game species, with a specific focus on species of conservation concern in line with Landscape Conservation Cooperative goals. This component recognizes that land management actions taken to improve deer habitat or coordinate harvest can also affect vegetation structure, forest regeneration, edge habitat, and disturbance regimes, which in turn can influence a wider community of wildlife. The project’s conservation value, therefore, is not limited to improving deer management outcomes; it also aims to determine whether DMCs can contribute to broader biodiversity and conservation targets when viewed through the lens of habitat networks and landscape ecology.
Administratively, the funding announcement is identified as Funding Opportunity Number F17AS00156 under CFDA 15.664, with an activity category spanning education, environment, and natural resources. It was created March 9, 2017, with an original closing date of March 16, 2017, and it is explicitly described as a notice of intent to award to a single source, meaning it was not a typical open competition despite listing eligibility as "unrestricted" in a general sense. The opportunity anticipated a single award, with an award ceiling listed as 1 (as provided in the source text), reinforcing that this was structured around one primary recipient executing the project in coordination with the named partners.Apply for F17AS00156
- The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the education, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Conservation Delivery at the Nexus of Game Management and Landscape Ecology: Strategic Use of Deer management Cooperatives in Habitat Networks" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.664.
- This funding opportunity was created on Mar 09, 2017.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 16, 2017 THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD TO A SINGLE SOURCE ANNOUNCEMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS NOTICE.. (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 $1.00 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.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the title of this grant opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "Conservation Delivery at the Nexus of Game Management and Landscape Ecology: Strategic Use of Deer Management Cooperatives in Habitat Networks."
Which federal agency is offering this grant?
This is a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service discretionary grant under the Department of the Interior.
What is the main purpose of the project?
The project focuses on using Deer Management Cooperatives (DMCs) as a practical, landscape-scale conservation tool. Instead of treating deer management as isolated, parcel-by-parcel decisions, it examines how coordinated groups of neighboring landowners and hunters can be mapped, measured, and evaluated within broader habitat network and landscape conservation planning.
What is a Deer Management Cooperative (DMC) in the context of this grant?
In this opportunity, a DMC refers to a group of neighboring landowners and hunters who coordinate deer management across property lines. The project treats these coordinated units as potential building blocks for conservation planning at larger spatial scales.
Who is the intended recipient of the award?
The award is intended for the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA).
Who are the expected partners on the project?
The project is expected to be carried out by QDMA in partnership with the University of Georgia, state wildlife agencies, and deer hunters.
Which states are included in the project data?
The project uses data from six states: Michigan, Texas, Missouri, New York, Georgia, and Florida.
What kinds of landscape questions will the project evaluate?
Based on the description, the project evaluates where DMCs are located and how they are configured across the landscape, including their spatial extent, arrangement, and configuration. It also examines how cooperative boundaries align with habitat features and land ownership patterns, how connected or fragmented cooperatives are, and how they sit within broader habitat networks.
How does the grant connect deer management to landscape ecology and habitat networks?
The project looks at DMCs as conservation planning units within a habitat network approach. It focuses on connectivity and landscape configuration, asking whether coordinated deer management units can be used as functional components in broader landscape-level conservation planning and prioritization.
What does the project mean by a "successful" DMC?
The project aims to define DMC success in measurable terms using both human and biological outcomes. Human outcomes include hunter success and satisfaction. Biological outcomes include deer herd management results and deer health.
What types of measures or indicators might be used to evaluate DMC success?
The opportunity suggests evaluating indicators such as harvest outcomes, achievement of herd objectives (for example, sex ratios or age structure goals where applicable), and deer condition or health metrics, along with social indicators like hunter satisfaction and perceived effectiveness of cooperative management.
Is the project trying to move beyond anecdotal claims about cooperatives?
Yes. A stated aim is to translate the idea of DMC success into quantifiable parameters so the characteristics of effective cooperatives can be evidence-based and potentially predictive.
What are the expected deliverables for practitioners and agencies?
The project is expected to translate findings into usable guidance, including educational and outreach materials such as manuals, webinars, and publications. These materials are aimed at state, federal, and non-governmental natural resource professionals.
Who is the intended audience for the outreach and educational materials?
The stated audience includes state, federal, and non-governmental natural resource professionals.
How are the findings intended to be used in real-world planning?
The opportunity emphasizes helping agencies and partners understand how to implement and support DMCs in ways that align with landscape-level conservation planning. This includes incorporating cooperative boundaries and management practices into broader planning frameworks, prioritization exercises, and habitat network designs.
Does the grant address impacts beyond deer?
Yes. The grant requires an assessment of DMC benefits to other game and non-game species, with specific attention to species of conservation concern aligned with Landscape Conservation Cooperative goals.
Why would deer management cooperatives affect other species?
The description notes that actions taken to improve deer habitat or coordinate harvest can influence vegetation structure, forest regeneration, edge habitat, and disturbance regimes, which can affect a wider community of wildlife. The project aims to evaluate whether DMCs contribute to broader biodiversity and conservation targets when viewed through habitat networks and landscape ecology.
What is the Funding Opportunity Number for this notice?
The Funding Opportunity Number is F17AS00156.
What is the CFDA number associated with this opportunity?
The CFDA number listed is 15.664.
What activity categories does this opportunity fall under?
The activity category spans education, environment, and natural resources.
When was the funding announcement created?
The announcement was created on March 9, 2017.
What was the original closing date?
The original closing date was March 16, 2017.
Was this an open, competitive grant opportunity?
No. It is explicitly described as a notice of intent to award to a single source, meaning it was structured around one intended recipient rather than a typical open competition.
If eligibility is listed as "unrestricted," why is it still single-source?
The notice indicates eligibility as "unrestricted" in a general sense, but it also clearly states it is a notice of intent to award to a single source and identifies QDMA as the intended recipient. Based on the provided text, the practical effect is that it was not run as a standard open competition.
How many awards were anticipated?
The opportunity anticipated a single award.
What does the award ceiling of "1" mean here?
In the source text, the award ceiling is listed as 1, and the notice also anticipated a single award. Taken together, the information indicates the announcement was structured to support one primary recipient executing the project with partners.
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