Integrating long term datasets with next generation ecological models to quantify ecological response in aquatic systems | W81EWF 23 SOI 0015

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81EWF 23 SOI 0015

The Department of Defense, through the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), is seeking a university partner for a research effort aimed at improving how aquatic ecosystems are predicted and managed by connecting long-term environmental datasets to the next generation of integrated ecological models. The core problem the opportunity is trying to solve is that many newer process-based ecological models have mostly been built or calibrated using short-term data sets (generally less than three years, often drawn from limited field campaigns or literature values). That short time window makes it hard for the models to reliably forecast real-world ecological change over longer periods, especially when aquatic systems are shaped by slow trends, episodic disturbances, and feedbacks that only become clear over many seasons or years. ERDC is looking for work that strengthens the models by grounding them in longer records that capture variability in flow, climate disturbances, habitat change, and biological community dynamics.

The grant emphasizes that aquatic ecosystems function as tightly coupled systems where physical processes (like streamflow and sediment movement), ecological processes (like species interactions and community shifts), and human influences (such as water management and infrastructure) interact in complex ways. Because resource managers need to make durable decisions under uncertainty, ERDC is prioritizing modeling improvements that can translate long-term monitoring and experiments into better forecasts of ecological response to both natural events (floods, droughts) and human-driven changes. The practical payoff is improved decision support for public-benefit missions such as sustaining aquatic habitat while maintaining and improving infrastructure, managing flood risk, and reducing coastal storm damage, all of which require defensible long-range projections rather than short-run snapshots.

The university partner is expected to do more than compile existing datasets. A major part of the role is to identify gaps in current long-term data records, design field-based studies to fill those gaps, and then use the resulting measurements to help develop, conceptualize, calibrate, and parameterize integrated ecological models. The work is framed as multidisciplinary and field-driven, implying coordinated measurement of physical habitat and hydrology alongside biological response, with explicit attention to linking process drivers to changes in species dynamics over time. The end goal is to generate the kinds of parameters and relationships that allow next generation models to move beyond general assumptions and instead represent real aquatic system behavior across space and time.

ERDC lays out several specific research objectives. First, applicants should propose a robust experimental design capable of quantifying physical and environmental drivers at multiple scales within aquatic systems, including both surface environments and subsurface or hyporheic zones. Second, the research should characterize small-scale spatial patterns in ecological response for both invasive and native benthic communities, particularly focusing on how changes in in-stream flow influence where organisms occur and how they are distributed. Third, the opportunity calls for streamflow-focused studies that evaluate how different climatic disturbance regimes, especially floods and droughts, affect ecological response across multiple temporal scales, again with explicit attention to invasive and native benthic communities.

Beyond these flow and disturbance components, the work is also expected to scale up to system-level experiments that quantify connectivity and movement (how organisms and materials move through the system), community dynamics, and both intra- and inter-specific interactions. ERDC is clearly interested in translating these observations into modeling structure, meaning methods that use empirical results to define how model components connect and how processes should be represented. Additional objectives include determining positive and negative associations among species (co-occurrence patterns tied to distribution and abundance) and testing whether those associations arise from biological interactions (like competition or facilitation) or abiotic pathways (like shared habitat preferences or flow conditions). The research should also quantify how watershed hydrogeomorphology relates to species distributions, linking landscape form and watershed processes to ecological patterns observed within the aquatic network. Finally, the project must deliver parameter estimates suitable for use in next generation integrated ecological models that quantify ecological response, ensuring the field work results in concrete inputs that improve model performance.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary funding opportunity offered as a cooperative agreement, indicating ERDC anticipates substantial involvement and coordination during the project rather than a hands-off grant. The opportunity is listed under CFDA 12.630 and was released May 16, 2023, with an original closing date of July 17, 2023. ERDC expects to make one award with a funding ceiling of $2,500,000. The eligibility category is noted as "Others" with additional eligibility details referenced in the full announcement, which typically means applicants should verify whether the opportunity is limited to certain institution types, partnerships, or other conditions described outside the summary text.

• The Department of Defense, Engineer Research and Development Center in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Integrating long term datasets with next generation ecological models to quantify ecological response in aquatic systems" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.630.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 16, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 17, 2023. (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 $2,500,000.00 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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