Wild Resource Conservation Program 2012 Grant Priorities
We are soliciting grant applications in four primary categories – surveys, research, conservation and management, and education. Review the lists below for the detailed priorities within each of these categories.
Surveys
- Locations of plant species of special concern throughout the shale gas region, including confirming historic populations and recording new populations.
- Locations of wild populations of ginseng on state and federal lands in Pennsylvania.
- Surveys for red-bellied turtle and bog turtle.
- Hellbender surveys.
- Status and extent of the ranavirus in Pennsylvania’s reptile and amphibian populations.
- Baseline surveys of aquatic species and water quality in State Parks located within the shale gas region.
- Studies and field surveys of Tentatively Undetermined plant species.
Research
- Understanding the effects of energy infrastructure (pipelines, well pads, access roads) on plant species of concern.
- Characterizing the habitat fragmentation impacts of combined energy infrastructure corridors.
- Clarifying taxonomic uncertainties of native plants.
- Understanding the effects of environmental changes on plants species with microhabitat requirements.
- Assessment of the status of the Eastern pearlshell mussel.
- Data collection and analysis that will provide a systematic assessment of the distribution and abundance of Pennsylvania mammal Species of Greatest Conservation Need. Preferred projects will develop standardized survey and sampling protocols and engage the public (i.e. citizen-science approach) as well as species specialists to employ a wide range of techniques to comprehensively survey the state’s mammals.
- Evaluate the genetic diversity among metapopulations or isolated populations of terrestrial mammals, such as the Allegheny woodrat, that would likely affect viability of the species in Pennsylvania.
Conservation and Management
- Determining the ecological importance of, and conservation needs for, Pennsylvania’s edge-of-range plant species.
- Developing recommendations for achieving maximum species diversity in early successional stage habitats in state parks and state forests.
Education
- Develop educational media, such as smart phone apps or videos, to improve wildlife habitat and native plant communities on local parks, municipal lands and land trust properties.
