GRPL- CESU: Monitor the Response of Bats to the Arrival of White Nose Syndrom at Jewl Cave National Monument (JECA) | NPS NOIP19AC00151

Opportunity Information: Apply for NPS NOIP19AC00151

The grant opportunity titled "GRPL- CESU: Monitor the Response of Bats to the Arrival of White Nose Syndrome at Jewel Cave National Monument (JECA)" is a National Park Service (Department of the Interior) cooperative agreement focused on tracking how bat populations at Jewel Cave respond once White-nose Syndrome (WNS) arrives. The central value of the project is that Jewel Cave has strong pre-WNS baseline information, allowing researchers to compare bat health, abundance, and behavior before and after disease arrival in a way that is rarely possible in the western United States. Because much of the early WNS science and documented impacts have come from eastern North America, this project is positioned to provide some of the first clear, baseline-based documentation of how western bat species respond when WNS reaches a site where detailed pre-arrival monitoring already exists.

The project is designed around three connected goals. First, researchers will actively capture bats in and around Jewel Cave using mist-net surveys to document changes in bat community statistics and health that may occur with WNS emergence. These capture-based surveys will be directly compared with ongoing acoustic monitoring, which records bat echolocation activity and can indicate shifts in bat presence, relative activity levels, and seasonal patterns without physically handling animals. By pairing mist netting data with acoustic data, the study can help interpret whether changes seen in acoustic detections reflect real population changes, behavioral shifts, changes in species composition, or simply differences in detectability over time.

Second, each captured bat will be outfitted with a PIT tag (Passive Integrated Transponder tag) so the project can quantify movement patterns into and out of Jewel Cave using an automated reader system. This is meant to move beyond simple presence/absence and toward a clearer picture of how individual bats use the cave across time, including potential changes in roost use, visitation frequency, or seasonal movement that might occur as WNS pressure increases. During handling, bats will also be identified to species, and basic demographic and condition information will be collected, including sex and reproductive status. Each individual will be evaluated for signs consistent with WNS infection, supporting early detection and a better understanding of how infection correlates with behavior and cave use.

Third, the project has an explicit emphasis on communicating results to both technical and public audiences. Findings are intended to be shared with the broader science and conservation communities and with on-the-ground resource managers through peer-reviewed publications, formal reports that outline results, and participation in professional groups and conferences at local, regional, and national levels. The park also plans to use the new information for public interpretation and outreach, updating interpretive tours and talks, refreshing its Adopt-a-Bat brochure, and incorporating results into social media and a park podcast. In other words, the grant is structured not only to generate data but to ensure the results translate into practical management guidance and public-facing education.

From an administrative standpoint, this was a discretionary funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number NPS NOIP19AC00151) issued under a cooperative agreement mechanism, with activities categorized under education, environment, natural resources, and science and technology research and development (CFDA 15.945). Eligibility was limited to public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, consistent with the CESU-style partnership approach. The opportunity was posted with a creation date of April 18, 2019, and an original closing date of April 28, 2019. The anticipated award structure was a single award (Expected Awards: 1) with an award ceiling of $244,000.

Overall, the grant aims to produce one of the most informative west-region case studies of WNS arrival by leveraging strong pre-disease baseline data and combining three complementary monitoring tools: mist net capture surveys for direct health and demographic assessment, PIT tagging with automated detection for movement and cave-use metrics, and acoustic monitoring for broader behavioral and activity trends. The intended end result is actionable information that helps managers in western areas that are still WNS-free anticipate impacts, refine monitoring strategies, and set conservation priorities based on evidence from a comparable western system.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the education, environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "GRPL- CESU: Monitor the Response of Bats to the Arrival of White Nose Syndrom at Jewl Cave National Monument (JECA)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 18, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 28, 2019. (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 $244,000.00 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.

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