Desert Tortoise Juvenile Survivorship at Mojave National Preserve, Phase II | P17AS00781

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00781

The Desert Tortoise Juvenile Survivorship at Mojave National Preserve, Phase II opportunity is a discretionary National Park Service (NPS) funding action under the U.S. Department of the Interior that serves as a public Notice of Intent to Award rather than an open call for proposals. In practical terms, it is not a request for applications and it does not invite competition; instead, it announces that NPS plans to issue a single cooperative agreement to a specific partner for a defined set of project activities. The project focuses on natural resource work related to juvenile desert tortoise survivorship at Mojave National Preserve, indicating an emphasis on applied conservation research and management support for a sensitive Mojave Desert species.

This action is tied to Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00781 and uses a Cooperative Agreement as the funding instrument. A cooperative agreement typically means NPS expects to have substantial involvement in the project, such as collaborating on study design, coordinating fieldwork and logistics, aligning deliverables with park management needs, sharing data standards, and ensuring the work supports NPS stewardship responsibilities. The activity category is Natural Resources and the CFDA number listed is 15.945, which corresponds to National Park Service assistance programs. The announcement date (creation date) is September 5, 2017, and the listed original closing date reiterates that there is no application period because the opportunity is not open for proposals.

The intended recipient is the University of Georgia through Cooperative Agreement P17AC01606. The University of Georgia is identified as a partner under the Piedmont-South Atlantic Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU), a network designed to support collaboration among federal agencies and research institutions. The CESU framework is commonly used by DOI agencies to access specialized scientific expertise and to carry out research, technical assistance, and education projects that align with agency missions. Although the eligible applicant category is described broadly as public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, the notice clarifies that NPS intends to proceed without full and open competition for this specific Phase II effort, meaning the recipient has effectively been preselected based on the CESU partnership and the project need.

Financially, the opportunity lists an award ceiling of $49,999 and anticipates one award. That ceiling indicates the maximum expected federal funding for this action, and the single expected award matches the intent to fund a particular cooperative agreement rather than multiple competing projects. The “Phase II” label suggests continuation or expansion of prior work, such as building on earlier field seasons, refining methods, increasing sample sizes, extending monitoring, or addressing questions that emerged during an initial phase. While the notice does not provide technical details about methods, “juvenile survivorship” work in a preserve setting typically involves tracking young tortoises over time, identifying mortality factors, evaluating habitat conditions, and producing management-relevant findings that can guide conservation actions within Mojave National Preserve.

Overall, this notice functions as a transparency step: it informs the public that NPS intends to fund a specific, collaborative natural resources project on juvenile desert tortoise survivorship at Mojave National Preserve through a cooperative agreement with the University of Georgia, with up to $49,999 in federal support, and it clarifies that the action is not open for application or competitive submission.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Desert Tortoise Juvenile Survivorship at Mojave National Preserve, Phase II" 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 Sep 05, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by This is not a request for applications.. (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 $49,999.00 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.

Apply for P17AS00781

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