The purpose of the atlantic flyway cooperative research and survey grant proposalis to improve the status of waterfowl and other migratory waterbirds in the atlantic flyway

Federal Formula Grant Award Summary

The U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service (DOI FWS) Region 5 awarded $247,859 to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2030, under the Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education and Safety program (CFDA 15.611). This formula grant, authorized by the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937, funds the Atlantic Flyway Cooperative Research and Survey Grant, which aims to improve the status of waterfowl and other migratory waterbirds throughout the Atlantic Flyway region.

The primary deliverables include conducting population surveys and monitoring of migratory bird resources through aerial, boat, and ground-based surveys on breeding grounds; capturing and banding birds with numbered leg tags to assess survival, movement, and habitat use patterns; and implementing specialized research projects utilizing telemetry, color markers, and other advanced techniques to close knowledge gaps in bird population dynamics. The resulting data informs population abundance and distribution assessments, which directly support updates to conservation plans, adaptive harvest management strategies, and hunting regulations. The Wildlife Management Institute serves as the primary subrecipient, coordinating implementation with additional partner entities as needed. The outputs benefit waterfowl hunters and the general public through science-based wildlife management and regulated harvest strategies.

The atlantic flyway council contains representatives from all the government agencies that have management responsibility for migratory bird resources in the flyway. The council determines actions required for sound migratory game bird management, including collecting information about populations in order to support regulated harvest. Data collection typically involves visiting the breeding grounds to conduct surveys (aerial, boat, ground) that are used to extrapolate population estimates to specific land areas. Birds are also captured, and marked with numbered tags (typically leg bands) to help understand survival, movement, and habitat use at multiple scales. Specific research project goals utilizing specialty techniques (telemetry, color markers, etc) are often incorporated to close knowledge gaps and inform future decisions. The expected outcomes include providing invaluable information on migratory bird population abundance, distribution, and trends. The data are used to update a wide variety of conservation plans, adaptive harvest management strategies, and hunting regulations.beneficiaries include waterfowl hunters and members of the public who enjoy seeing or hunting waterfowl and other waterbirds.subrecipients under this grant include the wildlife management institute, who will engage additional entities as needed to carry out the implementation of this grant.