Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Great Lakes-Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit

The US Geological Survey is offering a funding opportunity to a CESU partner for research into the role of viruses in stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD). SCTLD is an emerging infectious disease with unknown etiology causing mass-mortality of stony corals along the Florida coral reef tract. The disease first emerged in 2013 near the port of Miami and has spread to the northern extent and south through the Florida Keys. Greater than 20 species have been affected, including >80% mortality in highly susceptible species, and recent surveys suggest this disease outbreak will permanently alter the community composition and structure of Florida’s coral reefs. In this opportunity, are seeking a partner with expertise in genomics and virology as well as diagnostic methods that can investigate and characterize new viral diseases. The USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) will connect the CESU partner with management partners to gain access to diseased coral samples. In addition, the partner will collaborate actively with USGS board-certified wildlife pathologists and research virologists, the NOAA coral reef program, and the Florida Coral Reef Tract – Disease Advisory Committee.