Opportunity Information: Apply for F19AS00216
This grant opportunity focuses on using genetic parentage and sibship analysis to evaluate how well lake sturgeon stocking and natural reproduction efforts are maintaining healthy genetic diversity in Lake Superior tributaries. Lake sturgeon are a long-lived, slow-to-mature species that has been reduced or lost from many Great Lakes rivers, so rebuilding populations is not just about producing more fish, but also about making sure restored populations reflect broad representation of the spawning adults and do not unintentionally drift toward low diversity or high relatedness. The project is centered on streamside rearing and stocking work conducted in Michigan's Ontonagon River system, paired with genetic reconstruction of family relationships among wild-caught fry from other key rivers.
A major driver for the work is uncertainty about whether the current hatchery-style mating and rearing procedures produce an even genetic contribution across parents. In the described process, eggs and milt are collected from adult lake sturgeon captured during spawning in the Sturgeon River in Baraga County, Michigan. Adults are crossed using a controlled design (reported as a 14:5 female:male ratio). For each female, her eggs are divided into separate batches, and each batch is fertilized with milt from a single male. After fertilization, the batches are recombined back into one group for that female and then reared together through the season. While this method is intended to spread a female's offspring across multiple males, recombining fertilized batches can still lead to unequal survival among families due to differences in fertilization success, early development, disease resistance, handling effects, or density and competition in rearing. If some families consistently dominate survival, stocking could unintentionally represent only a narrow slice of the intended parental pool.
To address that concern, the project will genotype stocked fish and assign each juvenile back to its parents, allowing managers to quantify how many offspring each adult actually contributed to the final stocked cohort. Fin tissue samples are collected from each fingerling at the time of stocking, creating a direct, fish-by-fish genetic record of the stocking product. Parentage analysis will then estimate family sizes, identify over- or under-represented breeders, and provide a practical measure of whether the mating design is achieving its goal of broad genetic representation. Those results can inform changes to mating schemes, rearing practices, or selection of spawners in future years to better preserve effective population size and long-term adaptive potential.
In addition to the hatchery/stocking evaluation, the opportunity includes reconstructing sibship relationships among fry collected from the Sturgeon River and the St. Louis River. This part of the work aims to infer how many adults successfully spawned in the wild (the number of contributing spawners) and to estimate their genotypes indirectly from offspring data. Sibship reconstruction helps managers understand real-world reproductive success and whether natural reproduction is being driven by many adults or just a few highly successful individuals. This provides a window into the genetic health and resilience of existing populations, especially in systems where capturing and sampling all spawning adults is difficult.
The funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, meaning the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is expected to be actively involved rather than simply issuing a grant and stepping back. The Ashland Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (FWCO) plays a central role over multiple years. USFWS staff will capture spawning adults for gamete collection, design and implement annual mating schemes, fertilize eggs, rear fish through hatch, and provide daily care for roughly 4 to 5 months each year until the juveniles are ready to stock. At stocking, the Service will measure, weigh, and tag each fish and collect the fin clip tissue samples that will be sent for genetic analysis. Ashland FWCO will also coordinate sample analysis logistics, troubleshoot issues, distribute genetic results to partner agencies, and participate as co-authors on resulting presentations and publications.
This notice is not a typical competitive funding opportunity. It is explicitly a notice of intent to make a single-source award to West Virginia University (WVU) under an internal justification (505DM 2.14B.(4)), and it states there is no application process. The rationale for the sole-source approach is that WVU's genomics laboratory has led Lake Superior lake sturgeon population genetic work for more than a decade, already holds the baseline genetic reference data for Great Lakes lake sturgeon, and has experience analyzing cohort genetic diversity in other Lake Superior populations. Using the existing reference datasets and established analytical pipeline is presented as the most economical and efficient way to complete parentage and sibship reconstruction while ensuring continuity with prior regional assessments.
Key administrative details include: Funding Opportunity Number F19AS00216; Agency: Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; category: discretionary; instrument type: cooperative agreement; activity area: environment and natural resources; CFDA number 15.662. The expected number of awards is one, with an award ceiling of $186,882. The posting dates indicate the opportunity was created May 22, 2019, with an original closing date of May 30, 2019, reflecting its role as a formal notice rather than an open solicitation.
Overall, the project is designed to answer a straightforward but high-impact management question: are stocking and natural reproduction efforts producing genetically diverse, well-represented cohorts that support long-term recovery of lake sturgeon in Lake Superior tributaries? By pairing hands-on field and hatchery operations led by USFWS with specialized genetic analysis performed by WVU, the work aims to produce actionable metrics on breeder contribution, family structure, and the effective number of spawners, all of which directly influence how restoration programs are evaluated and refined over time.Apply for F19AS00216
- The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Parentage Analysis for Stocked and Wild Caught Lake Sturgeon in Lake Superior" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.662.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 22, 2019.
- Applicants must submit their applications by May 30, 2019 There is not an application process for this funding opportunity. This is a notice of intent to award a single source cooperative agreement to West Virginia University under justification 505DM 2.14B.(4).. (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 $186,882.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the main purpose of this grant opportunity?
The opportunity supports genetic parentage and sibship analysis to evaluate whether lake sturgeon stocking and natural reproduction in Lake Superior tributaries are maintaining healthy genetic diversity. The goal is to ensure restored populations reflect broad representation of spawning adults and avoid unintended outcomes like low diversity or high relatedness.
Why is genetic diversity a key concern for lake sturgeon restoration?
Lake sturgeon are long-lived and slow to mature, and they have been reduced or lost from many Great Lakes rivers. Rebuilding populations is not only about producing more fish, but also about making sure that restored cohorts represent many breeders rather than a narrow subset, which could reduce resilience and long-term adaptive potential.
What restoration activities are being evaluated?
The project evaluates (1) streamside rearing and stocking in Michigan's Ontonagon River system and (2) natural reproduction outcomes by analyzing family relationships among wild-caught fry from other key rivers.
Which rivers are specifically mentioned in the project?
The work is centered on streamside rearing and stocking in Michigan's Ontonagon River system. It also includes fry collections and sibship reconstruction for the Sturgeon River (Baraga County, Michigan) and the St. Louis River.
What problem or uncertainty is driving the need for this study?
A major driver is uncertainty about whether current hatchery-style mating and rearing procedures result in even genetic contributions across parents. Even when a controlled crossing design is used, recombining fertilized egg batches and rearing them together can lead to unequal survival among families, meaning a stocked cohort may represent fewer breeders than intended.
How are adult lake sturgeon used in the stocking portion of the project?
Adults are captured during spawning in the Sturgeon River in Baraga County, Michigan. Eggs and milt are collected for controlled crosses as part of the annual mating and rearing process.
What mating design is described for producing offspring?
The described controlled crossing design is reported as a 14:5 female-to-male ratio. For each female, her eggs are divided into separate batches, each batch is fertilized with milt from a single male, and then the fertilized batches are recombined into one group for that female and reared together through the season.
Why could recombining fertilized batches still create genetic imbalance?
Once recombined, families can experience different survival rates due to differences in fertilization success, early development, disease resistance, handling effects, and density or competition during rearing. If certain families consistently survive better, the final stocked group could be dominated by a subset of families, reducing effective genetic representation.
What genetic method will be used to evaluate the stocked fish?
The project will genotype stocked fish and conduct parentage assignment so each juvenile can be matched back to its parents. This allows managers to estimate family sizes and quantify how many offspring each adult actually contributed to the final stocked cohort.
When and how are genetic samples taken from stocked juveniles?
Fin tissue samples are collected from each fingerling at the time of stocking. This creates a fish-by-fish genetic record of the stocking product that can be used for parentage analysis.
What management questions can parentage analysis answer for stocking programs?
Parentage analysis can show whether the intended mating design is producing broad representation across breeders or whether some adults are over- or under-represented. It provides practical metrics to support changes to mating schemes, rearing practices, or spawner selection to better preserve effective population size.
What does the sibship reconstruction component involve?
The project also reconstructs sibship relationships among fry collected from the Sturgeon River and the St. Louis River. Using offspring genetic data, the analysis infers family structure and helps estimate how many adults successfully spawned in the wild (the number of contributing spawners).
What is the purpose of reconstructing sibship among wild-caught fry?
Sibship reconstruction helps determine whether natural reproduction is supported by many spawning adults or dominated by a few highly successful individuals. It also allows estimation of adult genotypes indirectly from offspring data, which is useful in rivers where it is difficult to capture and sample all spawning adults.
What outcomes is this project ultimately trying to produce for managers?
The project is designed to produce actionable metrics on breeder contribution, family structure, and the effective number of spawners. These outputs help evaluate and refine restoration approaches so that stocking and natural reproduction contribute to genetically diverse, resilient lake sturgeon populations.
What type of funding instrument is being used?
The instrument is a cooperative agreement. This indicates that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is expected to be actively involved in the work rather than only providing funds.
How will USFWS be involved under the cooperative agreement?
USFWS staff (including the Ashland Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office) will capture spawning adults, collect gametes, design and implement annual mating schemes, fertilize eggs, rear fish through hatch, and provide daily care for about 4 to 5 months each year. At stocking, the Service will measure, weigh, tag each fish, and collect fin clip tissue samples for genetic analysis. The Ashland FWCO will also coordinate logistics for sample analysis, troubleshoot issues, distribute genetic results to partner agencies, and participate as co-authors on presentations and publications.
Is this a competitive funding opportunity with an application process?
No. The notice is explicitly a notice of intent to make a single-source award to West Virginia University (WVU) and states there is no application process.
Who is the intended award recipient and why is it single-source?
The intended recipient is West Virginia University (WVU). The justification given is that WVU's genomics laboratory has led Lake Superior lake sturgeon population genetic work for more than a decade, holds baseline genetic reference data for Great Lakes lake sturgeon, and has an established analytical pipeline and experience analyzing cohort genetic diversity in other Lake Superior populations. Using those existing datasets and workflows is presented as the most economical and efficient approach while maintaining continuity with prior regional assessments.
What is the funding opportunity number and CFDA number?
The Funding Opportunity Number is F19AS00216 and the CFDA number is 15.662.
What agency is offering this opportunity and what program area does it fall under?
The agency is the Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The activity area is environment and natural resources, and it is listed as a discretionary funding category.
How many awards are expected and what is the award ceiling?
The expected number of awards is one, and the award ceiling is $186,882.
What are the posting dates listed for this notice?
The opportunity was created on May 22, 2019, and the original closing date is May 30, 2019. These dates reflect that it functions as a formal notice rather than an open solicitation.
What role does the Ashland Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (FWCO) play?
Ashland FWCO plays a central role over multiple years, including coordinating sample analysis logistics, troubleshooting issues, distributing genetic results to partner agencies, and participating as co-authors on resulting presentations and publications, in addition to USFWS field and hatchery responsibilities described in the notice.
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