U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Awards WNS Grants to 28 States

June 30, 2013 / United States, North America

Bat with White-nose Syndrome in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Photo by USFWS

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently announced grant awards to 28 states for white-nose syndrome related projects.

The funds, totally just over $950,000, will be used by state natural resource agencies to support research, monitor bat populations and detect and respond to the disease devastating bat populations across eastern U.S. and Canada.

Previous such grants have been instrumental in supporting projects that develop and assess management recommendations as well as improving our understanding of the disease.

These grants provide essential support to our state partners in responding to this disease. The research,monitoring, and actions made possible by these grants have yielded valuable results and insights for our national response to white-nose syndrome. Dr. Jeremy Coleman, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National WNS Coordinator

Proposals were received from 28 states requesting $1,042,938. After evaluating the requests, all eligible proposals were given at least partial awards, with amounts ranging from about $7,000 to $47,500.

Funding for grants was provided through the Endangered Species Recovery program.

Draft WNS 2013 Award Amounts by State

State	Award
Colorado	$41,500
Connecticut	$41,546
Delaware	$6,877
Idaho	$41,500
Illinois	$29,449
Indiana	$9,230
Iowa	$25,782
Kentucky	$47,500
Maine	$17,371
Michigan	$47,500
Minnesota	$20,970
Mississippi	$42,248
Montana	$31,096
Nebraska	$39,813
New Jersey	$43,287
Missouri	$9,500
North Carolina	$45,000
Ohio	$43,000
Oregon	$41,487
Pennsylvania	$26,760
Rhode Island	$34,226
Tennessee	$47,500
Texas	$39,566
Vermont	$29,500
Virginia	$38,350
Washington	$15,136
West Virginia	$47,500
Wisconsin	$47,500