AOS 2026 Bridge/Completion Grants
The American Ornithological Society (AOS) supports research by the ornithological community that advances the understanding and conservation of birds. As part of that commitment, the AOS has created a new funding opportunity for researchers who have lost previously awarded funding as a result of changes to the Federal funding landscape in 2025 and 2026. This program is not designed to fully replace lost funding, but rather is aimed at providing short-term ‘bridge’ or ‘stop-gap’ funding (see examples below).
Proposals focused on all areas of avian biology, as appropriate to the scope of the AOS (https://americanornithology.org/about/), are welcomed. Proposals that directly fund or benefit students and other early career professionals (e.g. postdocs, pre-tenure faculty) are strongly encouraged. In particular, proposals that provide support allowing for a student to finish their degree program and proposals that allow an on-going project to be completed will be viewed favorably.
Examples of the types of proposals that could be considered include, but are not limited to:
- A semester stipend for a graduate student whose previously awarded funding has been pulled
- Direct research costs (e.g., sequencing costs; field costs; technician support; equipment; publication costs), for which previously awarded funding has been pulled
- Stipend/salary support for summer internships for a training program that lost funding
Grant Information
Total anticipated funding: $400,000
Anticipated amounts for individual grants: $5,000 to ~$35,000. Note: the goals of this program are to help our membership in concrete and substantial ways, and also to support as many of our members as possible. Please consider these goals as you craft your budget request and carefully consider what you need to achieve a specific goal.
Eligibility
Proposals may only be submitted by principal investigators (PI) employed by or affiliated with:
- Institutions of Higher Education
- Nonprofit, non-academic organizations, including, but not limited to: independent
museums, research laboratories, non-governmental organizations, and similar organizations that directly engage in ornithological research and/or education, including state and federal agencies.
All submitters must be members of the American Ornithological Society at time of submission.
An individual PI may only submit one proposal per granting cycle.
Note: Actively enrolled students may not serve as principal investigators. Affected students are encouraged to work with an eligible advisor or mentor should they wish to submit a proposal.
If there are questions regarding eligibility, please contact the committee Chair, Andrea Townsend (aktownse@hamilton.edu).
Statement of Lost Funding
All proposals must include information that (1) clearly documents the loss of previously awarded funding, such as a letter or notice from the previous funding agency specifying the cancellation of a grant, and (2) identifies the element(s) of this lost funding that could be supported by AOS. Describe the ways in which funding could provide a short-term ‘bridge’ and/or support project completion. For example, could this funding fill a gap in salary for students or postdocs? Could it be used to complete an analysis or buy a piece of equipment needed to bring a project to completion? Could it help an early-career professional with career advancement? Other ideas are welcome and encouraged. This section must not be longer than 1 page (single spaced), with 1-inch margins and a font size of at least 11pt.
Budget & Budget Justification
A detailed budget and budget justification is required. Please explain how your proposed budget relates to your original (defunded) proposal budget. Itemize your budget and justify each element in case we can only partially fund your request. If AOS can only partially fund your request, would it still have an impact? Please explain in your justification. There are no restrictions on specific budget items as long as they are adequately justified. This section must not be longer than 1 page (single spaced), with 1-inch margins and a font size of at least 11pt.
Note that indirect costs (such as institutional administration fees) will not be covered.
Project Description
Please submit the original Project Narrative (e.g., Overview and Project Description, or the non-NSF equivalent) and Budget Justification for which you received funding.
Current & Pending Funding
A list that includes all currently funded projects and all pending grant applications must be included. Please include the title of the project/proposal, the funding agency, status (awarded, pending) and the amount.
Submission Guidelines
Please submit your proposal as a single pdf document in the order described above (STATEMENT OF LOST FUNDING; BUDGET AND BUDGET JUSTIFICATION (proposed); PROJECT DESCRIPTION (original); BUDGET JUSTIFICATION (original); CURRENT AND PENDING FUNDING).
Timeline
The submission deadline is 15 May 2026. Applications must be submitted through the AOS Member Portal.
We anticipate funding decisions will be made in 2–4 weeks.
Grant Reporting, Administration & Accounting
Funding must be distributed to an institution, rather than an individual.
Successful applicants are required to provide a brief summary of expenditures and a short (<1 page) progress report by 31 December in the year they receive the grant. The report should indicate how the AOS grant helped/is helping them complete a project, degree, etc.
Successful applicants must acknowledge their grant from AOS in any publications resulting from the funded project. A PDF of any such publication (or thesis abstract) should be submitted to AOS as soon as the publication is available.