Eligibility

Only current NCHS members are eligible. Join here! Applicants need not be based in North Carolina. Proposals will be accepted from individuals or small teams only. Only one proposal per year per member will be considered. We reserve the right to disqualify proposals that appear to have been written largely by generative AI.

Previous grant recipients may submit proposals requesting additional funding for a maximum continuous project duration of three years. Applicants who have received funding for the same project for three consecutive years are ineligible to receive funding for that project the following year.

We fund research in any geographic location, but proposals must demonstrate clear relevance to North Carolina. This could include:

• Research involving species native to North Carolina, introduced to North Carolina, or likely to become introduced to North Carolina in the near future,
• Restoration, monitoring, management or other conservation work taking place in North Carolina or benefitting species native to North Carolina,
• Herpetological education applicable to the citizens of North Carolina

Projects requesting support for work in countries that are subject to sanctions by the U.S. federal government cannot be considered.

The NCHS is a 501(c)3 organization and does not provide funding for overhead or other indirect costs.

Timeline

Proposals must be submitted by midnight US Eastern time on October 1^st. Proposal evaluation takes place during the month of October. Applicants will be notified of decisions during the first week of November and successful applicants will be announced at the NCHS Fall Meeting. Awards will normally be made available on 15 January by check or PayPal.

Reporting Requirements

A report is due to the NCHS within 13 months of receipt of funds. Reports can take one or more of the following forms:

• A written report submitted to grants@ncherps.org
• An article in the NCHS newsletter NC Herps
• A copy of a published peer-reviewed manuscript acknowledging support from the NCHS David L. Stephan Grants in Herpetology program
• An oral presentation at an NCHS meeting or another NCHS event

If a grantee is unable to complete a project for any reason, unexpended funds must be returned to the NCHS with an explanatory statement.

Selection Criteria

Research projects should identify the objectives and deliverables (e.g., journal article, book/book chapter, thesis/dissertation, dataset) of the project. Educational projects should address a recognized area of need and should identify the principal audience to be reached. Conservation projects should explain how monitoring to assess the effectiveness of the conservation action will be conducted.

Any eligible project pertaining to herpetological research, conservation, and education will be considered, but those that directly relate to amphibians and reptiles in North Carolina, especially those of conservation concern, will be preferred. If suitable proposals are lacking, less than the total available funds will be awarded, and unused funds will revert to the NCHS general fund.

Submission Guidelines

Proposals have no length requirements but must include:

1. Cover page (download here)
2. Objectives of the project
3. Proposed methodology
4. Timetable for project activities
5. Budget, including:
   1. Total cost of project
   2. Itemized budget including personnel, travel, equipment, supplies, and other line items
   3. Clear designation of which elements NCHS funding would cover (up to $1000)
   4. Clear designation of which, if any, elements are already funded by other sources, including institutional or personal cost-share. You may also indicate where attempts have been made or planned to apply to other grants.
6. Brief résumé or curriculum vita of applicant

Proposals should be submitted as a PDF by email to the NCHS Grant Review Committee at grants@ncherps.org no later than October 1^st.

David L. Stephan Grants in Herpetology Review Committee: Andrew Durso (chair), David Cooper, Megan Serr, Bryan Stuart, Arianna Kuhn. Committee members will make known to the committee any conflicts of interest and will recuse themselves from judging those proposals.

These guidelines for the David L. Stephan Grants in Herpetology program were initially accepted by the Executive Council on 20 February 1994 and revised on 8 Jan. 2006, 1 Sept. 2010, 7 January 2018, 15 August 2020, and 12 January 2025.

2026:

Jessica Yates (University of Central Florida) — A multi-isotope approach to determine niche overlap between native and invasive crocodilians within vulnerable habitats of south Florida — $1000 — Google Scholar

Jacob Twersky (Appalachian State University) — Occupancy of the salamanders Desmognathus mavrokoilius and Desmognathus marmoratus in Southern Appalachian streams post Hurricane Helene — $730 — Davenport lab website

Jeff Beane (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: An Ongoing Study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and Other Declining Reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina — $500

2025:

Alex Nelson (NC State University) — Presence of the fungal pathogens Ophidiomyces ophidiicola and Paranannizziopsis spp. in wild snakes in North Carolina — $1,000 — website

Zander Perelman (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) — Using field videography to study the foraging behavior of North Carolina’s coastal plain pitvipers — $830 — website/ResearchGate

Yucheol Shin (American Museum of Natural History) & Neil Balchan (Oklahoma State University) — Three little pygs: Do subspecies designations reflect genetic structure in the world’s smallest rattlesnake (Sistrurus miliarius)? — $1,000 — Shin website/Shin ResearchGate/Balchan ResearchGate

Jeff Beane (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: An Ongoing Study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and Other Declining Reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina — $170

2024:

Miriam Boucher (Clemson University) — Alligator Diet and Ecotoxicology in North Carolina and Beyond ($1000) — Kennedy Center/Clemson/Google Scholar

Arianna Kuhn (Virginia Museum of Natural History) — Integrative taxonomic assessment of the enigmatic “Southern Lineage” of Wehrle’s salamander (Plethodon wehrlei) in Virginia and North Carolina ($954) — professional website

Cooper Kework (Kennesaw State University) — Contribution of spatial heterogeneity to the maintenance of alternative reproductive tactics in Blue Ridge Two-Lined Salamander (Eurycea wilderae) ($920) — ResearchGate/Pierson lab

Jenna Palmisano (University of Central Florida) — Characterizing the threat of an invasive lungworm to southeastern snake populations ($1000) — Savage lab/ResearchGate

2023:

Sarah Kelso (Duke University) — Population Survey of Dwarf Waterdogs, Necturus punctatus, in New Hope Creek — $612 — Grunwald faculty profile

Jacob Hutton (Southern Illinois University) — Influence of Climatic Challenges on the Temporal Population Dynamics of a Threatened Treefrog Community — $980 — Warne lab

Chris Akcali (NCSMNS) — An Ongoing Survey of a Coastal Plain Population of the Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) in North Carolina — $1000

Jeff Beane (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: An Ongoing Study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and Other Declining Reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina — $1000

2022:

John Sealy (North Carolina Timber Rattlesnake Conservation Project) & Matt Estep (Appalachian State University) — Genetic diversity and population structure of selected Timber Rattlesnake populations in North Carolina — $1000 — Estep lab

Tristan Schramer (Clemson University) — Evaluating the Evolutionary History of the North American Watersnake Clade — $1000 — Parkinson lab

Maggie Grundler (UC Berkeley) — How special are specialists? Building a framework for dietary genomics — $1000 — Rosenblum lab

2021:

Iwo Gross (Auburn University) — Evaluating the conservation priority of diamond-backed terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) nesting beaches via paternal genetic contribution — $1000 — Wolak lab

Courtney Whitcher (Florida State University) — Uncovering the Function of Biofluorescence in Mate Choice and Predation in Frogs — $1000 — Courtney’s website/Moriarty Lemmon lab/paper

Chris Akcali (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México) — An Ongoing Survey of a Coastal Plain Population of the Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) in North Carolina — $1000 — Perez-Mendoza lab

2020:

Alexander Funk & Todd Pierson (UT-Knoxville) — Development of a molecular tool for studying amphibian diets — $991 — Todd’s website/Fitzpatrick lab/paper

Louisa Heidler (Western Carolina University) — Range and habitat characteristics of a North Carolina endemic salamander, the Blue Ridge Grey-Cheeked Salamander, Plethodon amplus — $990 — Pechmann lab/MS thesis

Sarah Goodnight (East Carolina University) — Tracking small-scale frog movement across the breeding season: implications for helminth parasite infection and dispersal — $955 — McCoy lab/PhD dissertation

2019:

Alexander Funk & Todd Pierson (UT-Knoxville) — Development of a molecular tool for studying amphibian diets — $900 — Todd’s website/Fitzpatrick lab

Philip Gould (Ohio State University) — Evaluating Biologically-Mediated Resource Linkages in Terrestrial-Aquatic Systems — $800 — Philip’s website/PhD dissertation

Meaghan Gade (Ohio State University) — Evaluating the Spatial and Temporal Variation of Stress in Terrestrial Salamanders Across the Southern Appalachian Mountains using a Novel Methodology — $780 — Meaghan’s website/PhD dissertation

Chris Akcali (UNC-Chapel Hill) — An Ongoing Survey of a Coastal Plain Population of the Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) in North Carolina — $270 — Pfennig lab webpage

Jeffrey C. Beane (NCSMNS) – Project Simus: An ongoing study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and other declining reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina — $250 — Project Simus website/WUNC public radio story

2018:

Anne Runyon and Sandy Durso (NCHS) for producing a set of Color Me Cards featuring hand drawn images of North Carolina herps — $800 — Anne’s website/Sandy’s website

Chris Akcali (UNC-Chapel Hill) — An Ongoing Survey of a Coastal Plain Population of the Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) in North Carolina — $950 — webpage

Jeffrey C. Beane (NCSMNS) – Project Simus: An ongoing study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and other declining reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina ­– $950 — Project Simus website/2018 paper

2017:

Todd Pierson (University of Tennessee) — Characterization of current hybridization and introgression in zones of secondary contact between two salamanders using RADcap — $700– webpage/paper

Bryan Hudson and Zach Felix (Reinhardt University) — Project Pine Snake: Northwest Georgia Expansion — $700 — blog/Facebook

Nicole White (University of Georgia) — Effects of reproductive effort on mating system dynamics in a native social reptile (Gopher Tortoise) — $600– webpage/ResearchGate/2018 paper/2019 paper

Chris Akcali (UNC-Chapel Hill) — Survey of a Coastal Plain Population of the Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) in North Carolina — $370– webpage

2016:

Joseph Agugliaro (Fairleigh Dickinson University) — Seasonal changes in immune performance of the Rubber Boa (Charina bottae) — $1000 — webpage

John Roe (UNC-Pembroke) — Long-term responses of box turtles to prescribed burns in the North Carolina Sandhills — $1000 — Dr. Roe’s research/abstract of 2017 Journal of Thermal Biology paper/2018 Herp Con Bio paper/abstract of 2019 Forest Ecology & Management paper/2020 J. Zoology paper/2021 Forest Ecology & Management paper/2023 Herpetologica paper

Jeffrey C. Beane (NCSMNS) – Project Simus: An ongoing study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and other declining reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina ­– $650 — Project Simus website

2015:

Todd Pierson (University of Tennessee) & Eli White (Western Carolina University) — An environmental DNA survey for the patch-nosed salamander (Urspelerpes brucei) in North Carolina’s Gorges State Park — $1000 — webpage/2019 paper

Cassie Dresser (University of Tennessee) — Assessment of a mixed source reintroduction program for bog turtles (Glyptemys muhlenbergii) — $1000 — webpage/paper

Jeffrey C. Beane (NCSMNS) – Project Simus: An ongoing study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and other declining reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina ­– $647 — Project Simus website/2014 paper/2014 note (p. 142)

2014:

Adam Stuckert (ECU) — An analysis of pigments and pigment gland development in a Müllerian mimicry system (Ranitomeya: Dendrobatidae) — $600 — webpage/PhD dissertation

Molly Albecker (ECU) — Salt life: The effects of sea level rise on freshwater animal communities — $780 — webpage/paper

Sandy Durso (NCHS) & Jean Beasley (Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center) — Proposal to create two educational sea turtle costumes for the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center — $900 — sea turtle center and costume webpage

2013:

Jeff Beane (NCSMNS) — Project Simus — $695 — Project Simus website/2013 paper

Leigh Anne Harden (UNC-Wilmington) — Seasonal variation in osmotic and metabolic status of diamondback terrapins — $360 — webpage/paper/paper

Rebecca Tarvin (University of Texas, Austin) — Evolutionary origins and consequences of alkaloid insensitivity in poison frogs — $695 — webpage/2016 Molecular Biology & Evolution paper/2017 Science paper/2017 Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution paper/2024 Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution paper/2025 description of Epipedobates currulao

2012:

David Cooper & Henry Wood (Soil & Environmental Consultants PA/NC Herpetological Society) — Ecological and genetic study of a disjunct population of the Timber Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) in North Carolina — $1,000

Jeffrey C. Beane (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: An ongoing study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and other declining reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina — $450 — Project Simus website/2012 paper

Sean C. Sterrett (University of Georgia) — Why the conservation of freshwater turtles matters: Nutrient dynamics of common freshwater turtles in the Southeastern United States — $450 — webpage/paper

Jonathan P. Micancin (UNC-CH) — Evaluating the suspected decline of Pseudacris nigrita (Southern Chorus Frog) in North Carolina — $400

Melanie N. Stock (University of Wicsonsin, Madison) — The effects of soil temperature on belowground amphibian hibernation in an urban versus rural environment — $400 — lab website/preprint

2011:

David Cooper, Henry Wood, and Phil Bradley (NCSMNS/Soil & Environmental Consultants PA) — Ecological study of a disjunct population of the Timber Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) in North Carolina — $800

Jeff Beane (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: An ongoing study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) and other declining reptiles in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of North Carolina — $400 — Project Simus website/2012 hognose note (p. 659)/2012 pinesnake note (p. 349)

Kristen Cecala (Sewanee: University of the South) — Leaping the gap: Effects of canopy gaps on connectivity of Appalachian salamander populations — $400 — lab webpage/paper

Julie Ray — Changes in upper trophic levels as a result of chytridiomycosis-induced amphibian declines– $400

2010:

Jon Davenport (ECU) — Evaluating the costs and benefits of predator- and competitor-induced morphological changes of Ambystoma opacum — $600 — paper

A. Justin Nowakowski (Florida International University) — Influence of land use and connectivity on community and population genetic structure in a fragmented tropical anuran community — $500 — paper

Andrew Durso (Eastern Illinois University) — The interaction of diet and behavior in toad-eating snakes that feign death (Colubridae: Heterodon) — $1000 — behavior paper/diet paper/diet comparison paper

2009:

Rob McCandless (Methodist University) — Ecological effects of prescribed burns on the lizard community of a North Carolina longleaf pine habitat — $1000

Joe Milanovich (University of Georgia) — Modeling climate change effects on the function of southern Appalachian stream salamander communities — $900 — paper/paper

Vivian Maccachero (Florida International University) — The effect of hydroperiod on the structure of Peninsula Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens piaropicola) populations — $350

2008:

Andy Wood (Audubon North Carolina) — Carolina Gopher Frog (Rana capito) breeding habitat restoration in Pender County, NC — $1000

Matthew Chatfield (University of Michican) — Differential introgression of mtDNA relative to nuclear DNA and morphology in a hybrid zone involving three species of salamanders (Plethodontidae: Plethodon) — $1000 — paper

2007:

David Beamer (ECU) — Phylogenetic systematics of the plethodontid salamander genus Desmognathus: a comprehensive lineage survey based on fine-scale geographic sampling — $900 — 2008 Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution paper/2020 Zootaxa paper

David Cooper (NCSMNS) — Initial phase of chytrid fungus study — $1000 — paper

Leigh Anne Harden (Davidson College) — Terrestrial activity of Eastern Mud Turtles (Kinosternon subrubrum) on golf courses: an investigation of habitat selection — $600 — paper

Kevin Messenger (Marshall University) — Biodiversity and movement patterns of snakes in the Carolina Sandhills Wildlife Refuge of South Carolina — $300 — thesis

2006:

Jonathan Micancin (UNC-CH) — Variation and morphology of Acris in North Carolina — $500 — paper

Julie Ray (Old Dominion University) — Geographic variation and intergradation in the Redbelly Snake, Storeria occipitomaculata — $1000 — dissertation preview

2005:

Kevin Messenger (Marshall University) — Biodiversity and movement patterns of snakes on a road in the Carolina Sandhills NWR — $500 — thesis

Ron Sutherland (Duke University) — Critical thresholds for snake population persistence in North Carolina — $500 — dissertation

Andy Coleman (Appalachian State University) — Systematic relationship of Plethodon longicrus & Plethodon yonahlossee — $500

2004:

Kevin Messenger (Marshall University) — Biodiversity and movement patterns of snakes on roads in the Carolina Sandhills NWR — $300 — thesis

Ron Sutherland (Duke University) — Critical thresholds for snake population persistence in North Carolina — $500 — dissertation

Jeff Beane & Tom Thorp (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: A study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) in North Carolina — $500 — Project Simus website/2005 note (p. 295)/2006 note (p. 92)/2007 note (p. 467)

2003:

Jim Green (NCSU) — Using stable isotopes to infer ecological information from laticaudid and hydrophiid sea snakes and its implication for the fossil record — $200

Jeff Humphries (Clemson University) — Population structure and seasonal activity of the hellbender, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis, in Pisgah National Forest, NC — $500 — paper

Dave Wojnowski (NCSU) —  Project SAVE workshop — $500

2002:

Larissa Bailey (NCSU) — An evaluation of elastomer marking techniques for Eurycea bislineata wilderae and Desmognathus wrighti — $250 — dissertation

Ann Somers (UNC-Greensboro) — The Box Turtle Project — $250 — book

2001:

Chris Wilson (Appalachian State University) — Status of the Green Salamander (Aneides aeneus) in the Blue Ridge Mountains — $500 — paper

Jeff Beane & Dan Dombrowski (NCSMNS) — A study of a Chicken Turtle (Deirochelys reticularia) population in the North Carolina Sandhills — $435

Beth Case (NCSU) — Environmental enrichment in Eastern Box Turtles (Terrapene carolina) — $500 — paper

Larissa Bailey & David Pike (NCSU) — An evaluation of elastomer marking techinques on Desmognathus wrighti — $500 — dissertation

2000:

Jeff Beane & Dan Dombrowski (NCSMNS) — A study of a Chicken Turtle (Deirochelys reticularia) population in the North Carolina Sandhills — $500

Chris Wilson (Appalachian State University) — The effects of stream sedimentation on salamander communities — $500

Brian Ball (Appalachian State University) — Home range study of Eastern Hellbenders, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis: a radiotelemetric study — $500

1999:

Konrad Mebert (Old Dominion University) — Hybridization in the contact zone of the watersnakes Nerodia sipedon and N. fasciata in North Carolina: a molecular, ecological, and morphological approach — $500 — paper

Jean Beasley & Lilmar Taylor-Williams (Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center) — Topsail Turtle Project — $690 — webpage

Jeff Beane & Dan Dombrowski (NCSMNS) — A study of a Chicken Turtle (Deirochelys reticularia) population in the North Carolina Sandhills — $500

Brian Ball (Appalachian State University) — Home range study of Eastern Hellbenders, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis: a radiotelemetric study — $500

1998:

Jeff Beane & Tom Thorp (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: A study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) in North Carolina — $500 — Project Simus website/1998 note (p. 44)

William Hicks (Appalachian State University) — Electrophoretic survey of the salamander species complex Desmognathus fuscus — $500

Dale Jackan (NCSU) — Distributional survey of the Eastern Zigzag Salamander (Plethodon dorsalis) in North Carolina — $500

1997:

Jeff Beane & Tom Thorp (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: A study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) in North Carolina — $500

Heather Kingsley & Renee Fister (UNC-Greensboro) — Conservation of sea turtles: an educational packet for high school students — $500

Konrad Mebert (Old Dominion University) — Hybridization in the contact zone of the watersnakes Nerodia sipedon and N. fasciata in North Carolina: a molecular, ecological, and morphological approach — $500 — paper

1996:

Jeff Beane & Tom Thorp (NCSMNS) — Project Simus: A study of the Southern Hognose Snake (Heterodon simus) in North Carolina — $500 — Project Simus website

1995:

Gilbert S. Grant (UNC-Wilmington) — Effectiveness of a Diamondback Terrapin Excluder Device in Reducing Mortality in Crab Pots — $500 — paper

Rebecca L. Porter (SciWorks) — The Salamanders of North Carolina (exhibit) — $500 — webpage