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Friends of Nachusa Grasslands 2026 Scientific Research Grants – $85,000

To support scientific endeavors, Friends of Nachusa Grasslands awards monetary grants to qualified candidates conducting scientific research significant to Nachusa Grasslands.

Research projects focus primarily on prairie, savanna, wetland, woodland, and stream habitat management, such as prescribed fire, seed collection, weed control, general or specific flora or faunal populations, and natural areas restoration.

Thanks to a 1:1 challenge grant and the generous support of individual donors, organizations, and foundations, Friends has awarded $85,000 for 2026-2027, divided in varying amounts among ten researchers.

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Donations to Friends can be designated to Scientific Research Grants.

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2026 Grant Recipients, Projects, and Amounts

 Jordan Argrett, PhD Candidate University of Georgia. “The Missing Link: Hemiparasitic Plants as Keystone Species in Grassland Restoration.” The reintroduction of root-hemiparasites is a promising but underutilized tool in restoration ecology. This study will test the keystone species hypothesis across multiple hemiparasites, providing species-specific insight into their ecological effects and improving our ability to predict restoration outcomes. ($7179)
 
Eva Bednard, MS student San Diego State University. “Do Melilotus albus removal strategies impact native plant performance via microbial legacy effects?” This project will explore the potential for legacy effects of invasive legume removal on native prairie plants due to plant-soil feedbacks via soil microbes. The proposed experiment assesses whether physical, mechanical, or chemical removal of Melilotus spp. at Nachusa changes the microbial composition of soils, and whether this change affects the growth and success of native plants.  ($6674)
 
Bethanne Bruninga-Socolar, PhD Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc (WEST) and Sean Griffin, PhD University of Texas at Austin (in collaboration with K.C. Carter). “Long-term Trends in Nachusa’s Wild Bee Communities.” The research goal of this proposal is to continue long-term monitoring of Nachusa’s native bees, with 2026 marking year 13 since this program started. This data set on bee communities at Nachusa is a rare long-term data set with which to understand trends in bee abundance, richness, and diversity over time, and in particular how native bee communities respond to land management and climatic variation over time. ($11,000)
 
K.C. Carter, PhD student Illinois Natural History Survey and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “Quantifying the Nutritional Landscape of Floral Resources Surrounding Nachusa’s Long-term Wild Bee Monitoring Plots.” This study aims to determine the overall patterns of floral resource nutrition, use, and availability for native bees at Nachusa in collaboration with Drs. Bethanne Bruninga-Socolar and Sean Griffin. The proposed study is positioned to address how floral communities and nutritional profiles of pollen and nectar influence the wild bee communities within Nachusa Grasslands using network analysis, DNA metabarcoding, and macronutrient analyses. ($7605)

Matthew Doremus, PhD University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “Characterizing Linyphiid Dwarf Spiders and their Microbial Communities in a Restored Prairie Habitat." This project will use morphological and molecular techniques to characterize dwarf spider communities in different habitats across the Nachusa Grasslands. It will also characterize the bacterial communities associated with these spiders. ($12,769)

Joseph R. Milanovich, PhD Loyola University Chicago, and Sara Ruane, Ph.D Field Museum of Natural History. “Survey of Herpetofauna at Nachusa Grasslands using Adapted-
Hunt Drift Fence Technique (AHDriFT) Camera Trap Arrays.” Over the course of a two year survey, this study will determine the diversity, population status, and phenology of reptiles in Nachusa Grasslands by comparing captures in plots that have differing management regimes of 1) prescribed fire and 2) grazing. ($10,252)
 
Rodney Richardson, PhD Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc (WEST) and The Ohio State University. “Enumeration of Queen Bumble Bee Habitat Use with Environmental DNA Methods at Friends of Nachusa Grasslands.” Surveillance of the rusty patched bumble bee (RPBB; Bombus affinis) in the spring is currently limited due to the rarity of queens and regulatory prohibitions on netting surveys during queen foraging. Environmental DNA methods show strong promise for sensitive detection of RPBB (Richardson et al., 2026) and this study proposes to leverage this low-risk survey method toward improving knowledge of at-risk species biology. ($4,954)
 
Eva Cuilin Savard, PhD student University of Chicago. “The Role of Herbivory in Pyrogenic Carbon Sequestration in Grassland Soils.” By identifying how grazing influences PyC formation and persistence, this project will provide insights that can enhance restoration outcomes, soil health, and carbon sequestration capacity. This research will also provide insights on the overall impact of bison grazing and trampling on soil characteristics, fire intensity and propagation. ($5,375) 
 
Emily Wedel, PhD and Max Scheel, PhD student University of Notre Dame. “When Grasses Take Over: How Dominance Shapes Restored Prairie Diversity and Productivity Over Time.” Restored prairies often lose diversity over time, a process that is likely driven by increased dominance of C4 grasses, like big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii). This big bluestem removal experiment across the restoration chronosequence at Nachusa Grasslands proposes to quantify how grass dominance influences plant diversity, productivity, and plant-plant competition in prairie restorations over this three-year study. ($7,030)
 
Todd Widhelm, PhD, University of Nebraska State Museum and Felix Grewe PhD, Field Museum. “Genomic Diversity of Sexually and Asexually Reproducing Lichens on Prairie Rock Outcrops.” This project will compare the genomic diversity and population structure of sexually vs. asexually reproducing lichens inhabiting rocky outcrops across Nachusa Grasslands. Results will reveal how reproductive strategies shape connectivity and persistence in patchy habitats, expanding on the baseline inventory completed with previous Friends funding. ($12,089)

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For project descriptions, recipients and award amounts from other years, see Science at Nachusa Grasslands.

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UPDATED 01/2026