Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Rocky Mountain CESU

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The USGS is offering a funding opportunity to a CESU partner for research on the ecology of wild horses and burros in the Western USA. Studies will be field-based and will be conducted across 5 states. The National Academies of Science (NAS) conducted a science review of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wild horse and burro program. An outcome of this NAS review was a number of recommendations for new research, identification of data gaps, and knowledge needs. Our aim is to fill some of those data needs with collaborative research conducted jointly by USGS and University partners. This funding opportunity is to conduct research on the ecology of wild horses and burros across the western USA. Specific studies will investigate population size estimation, genetic structure of wild horse populations determined using fecal DNA, ecological and carrying capacity modeling, developing a suitable and safe radio collar for wild horses and burros, fertility control, behavioral ecology, habitat selection modeling, and sentinel demography research on several wild horse populations that span the Rocky Mountain region and Great Basin ecosystems. The goal of this research is to increase understanding of wild horse and burro ecology resulting in publications that contribute to the management of equid populations, and to relate this information to public land managers to improve management of feral equids on the landscape, to improve management of habitat, and to increase preparedness, adaptation, and resilience to climate change. Scientific analysis and synthesis is performed by a tight collaboration of USGS scientists and Colorado State University scientists.

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