The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday announced grant awards totaling $950,694 to twenty-eight states for white-nose syndrome (WNS) projects.
State natural resource agencies will use the funds to support research, monitor bat populations and detect and respond to white-nose syndrome, a disease that afflicts bats.
“White-nose syndrome has spread rapidly from one state in 2007 to 22 states and five Canadian provinces this year,” said Dr. Jeremy Coleman, the Service’s national WNS coordinator.
“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.”
“This is one of the most devastating diseases affecting wildlife in eastern North America,” said Wendi Weber, co-chairwoman of the White-Nose Syndrome Executive Committee and Service Northeast Regional Director. “Best estimates indicate that it has killed more than 5.7 million bats.”
First discovered in New York in the winter of 2006-2007, the disease has spread rapidly through the eastern U.S. and parts of Canada, and continues to move westward. The Service is leading a cooperative effort with federal and state agencies, tribes, researchers, universities and other non-government organizations to research and manage the spread of WNS. In addition to developing science-based protocols and guidance for land management agencies and other partners to minimize the spread of WNS, the Service has funded numerous research projects to support and assess management recommendations and improve basic understanding of the dynamics of the disease.
Funding for grants was provided through the Endangered Species Recovery program. Proposals were received from 28 states requesting $1,042,938. All eligible requests were given at least partial awards, ranging from about $7,000 to $47,500, for a total of $950,694.
Additional information about WNS, the international disease investigation, and research can be found on the national WNS website at
www.whitenosesyndrome.org/. The site contains up-to-date information and resources from partners in the WNS response, current news and links to social media.
America’s fish, wildlife and plant resources belong to all of us, and ensuring the health of imperiled species is a shared responsibility. We are working to actively engage conservation partners and the public in the search for improved and innovative ways to conserve and recover imperiled species. Learn more about the Endangered Species Program at:
www.fws.gov/endangered/.
The awards are as follows:
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