In order to ensure that wildlife exposed to petroleum products receive the best achievable capture and care, the OWCN sponsors up to $250,000 per year to support research and technology development efforts.
A Request for Proposals (RFP) is sent out each year in mid-March. Projects are reviewed by the OWCN and its Scientific Advisory Committee, and funding for accepted proposals begins in October.
Since 1996, over 100 projects have been sponsored, and over $2 million has been allocated to improve our understanding of how oil affects wildlife.
Project Types
Projects supported by this program have included both basic research and applied research projects. The OWCN supports both large-scale research projects, which require more than $10,000 per year for up to three years, and small or pilot projects, which require less than $10,000 for one year of funding. Small projects go through a less rigorous submission and review process.
Project Goals
The goals of the Competitive Grant program fall into several categories:
Improve Animal Care
Identify new, and refine current, wildlife rehabilitation techniques
Develop and validate new oiled wildlife treatments & diagnostics
Determine and test methods for mitigating the effects of oil on wildlife
Assess Wildlife Health
Investigate medical conditions that may affect care during oil spill response
Compile biomedical health parameters of commonly oiled wildlife species
Determine the health impacts of oil exposure, including those that persist after release
Assess the impacts of medical treatments and chemical countermeasures on wildlife
Determine Wildlife Population Information that Aids in Caring for Oiled Wildlife
Determine the demography & distribution of wildlife species in California
Understand how populations respond to oil spills (to improve rehabilitation protocols)
Develop New Technology for Oiled Wildlife Care
Generate methods to detect & quantify oil exposure, and to document effects
Assess applicability of radiotelemetry to monitor survival of wildlife after spills
Develop hardware to improve oiled wildlife rehabilitation & husbandry
Currently Funded Projects 2009-2010
Curt Clumpner
International Bird Rescue Research Center
The evaluation of the use of a mixing sprayer for cleaning oiled birds
Curt Clumpner
International Bird Rescue Research Center
Comparison of methyl oleate and methyl soyate as pre-treating agents in cleaning oiled birds
Kirk Klasing
UC Davis Department of Animal Science
Investigation into the Dietary Needs of Faunivorous Seabirds undergoing
Rehabilitative Care
Lynn Miller
Le Nichoir Wild Bird Rehabilitation Centre
Does fibrinogen act as a predictor of outcome for birds impacted by crude oil?
Sharon Parker
Tri-State Bird Rescue Research
Pharmacokinetics of injectable meloxicam dosed orally and determination of pH of the proventriculi of waterbirds
Mark Pokras
Tufts University Wildlife Clinic
WebAtlas of the Anatomy and Pathology of Aquatic Birds
John Takekawa USGS
Health parameters, distribution and behavior of grebes and scoters in California estuarine and marine waters
Lisa Tell
UC Davis Department of Medicine and Epidemiology
Identification
of inflammatory markers of oil exposure in mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos)
Ronald
Tjeerdema
UC Davis Department of Environmental Toxicology
Effects of Crude Oil and Dispersed Oil on Spawning Topsmelt (Atherinops affinis)
Rory Wilson
Swansea University
Institute
of Environmental Sustainability
Development
of minimal impact tags for tracking rehabilitated oiled seabirds
