Amendment 1, Include in special notice NAICS code 541712, Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology) The US Forest Service (FS), Superior National Forest, intends to award a sole source, firm fixed price purchase order, as authorized by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13 (13.106-1 (b) (1)), to Western Ecosystems Technology, Inc., 415 W 17th St STE 200, Cheyenne WY 82001-4303. The Chippewa National Forest has been collecting bat acoustic transect data using full spectrum recorders since 2011. The Superior National Forest has been collecting bat acoustic transect data using zero-crossing recorders since 2009. The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest has been collecting bat acoustic transect data since 2009. The principal objectives of the proposed analyses will be to: 1) characterize the summer bat community within each Forest, 2) determine summer distribution patterns of sensitive bat species like the northern long-eared bat (proposed federally endangered) within the Chippewa National Forest, the Superior National Forest and the Chequamegon-Nicolett National Forest, and 3) to provide a direct comparison of various acoustic identification techniques including both quantitative (automated programs) and qualitative (manual examination by experienced personnel) analysis methods. Data to be Analyzed • The Chippewa National Forest has been collecting acoustic transect data (driving routes) since 2011 using the Binary Acoustics AR-125. Call files are full spectrum in .wav format. There has been no screening of files to filter out noise files or other non-bat recordings. • The Superior National Forest has been collecting acoustic transect data (driving routes) since 2009 using the Anabat SD-1 and SD-2 acoustic detectors. Call files are zero-crossing and in typical Anabat format. There has been screening of files to filter out noise and other non-bat recordings. • The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest has been collecting acoustic transect data (driving routes) since 2009 using the Anabat SD-1 and SD-2 acoustic detectors. Call files are zero-crossing and in typical Anabat format. There has been screening of files to filter out noise and other non-bat recordings. Acoustic Analysis Full spectrum bat echolocation calls will be identified using the four quantitative identification methods currently under evaluation by USDI Fish and Wildlife Service: Bat Call Identification Program (BCID, www.batcallid.com), EchoClass (Eric Britzke, ERCD), Kaleidoscope Pro (www.wildlifeacoustics.com), and SonoBat (www.sonobat.com) (See http://www.fws.gov/midwest/Endangered/mammals/inba/ surveys/inbaAcousticSoftware.html. BCID and EchoClass will only identify zero-crossing (ZC) data so full spectrum call files are required to be converted to ZC data files using Kaleidoscope Pro. The resulting ZC data files will then be run through BCID and EchoClass for identification. Zero crossing calls will be identified using three of the quantitative identification methods: Bat Call Identification Program (BCID, www.batcallid.com), EchoClass (Eric Britzke, ERCD), and Kaleidoscope Pro (www.wildlifeacoustics.com) Qualitative call analyses will be conducted on all bat calls. Qualitative call analysis will be conducted by an experienced biologist with expertise in acoustic identification of bats in the eastern United States. All bat call files will be examined and identified to species, species group (e.g. big brown/silver-haired bat) or as unknown. Findings Report A findings report will be required for each Forest upon completion of the analysis. Each report will present data on the number of bat calls recorded and identified and compare the species identification results of each program. Project deliverables include the report, all acoustic identification program output files, summary spreadsheets, and labeled echolocation call files. This requirement is not expected to exceed $25,000. However, companies that feel they can provide equal services may submit a statement of capability, past performance information, price and delivery time for satisfying this requirement no later than 2 pm, Central Time, on 18 Dec 2014. The applicable NAICS code for this requirement is: 518210. The expected period of performance is approximately 6 months after issuance of a contract. Point of contact for this requirement is Paul Nephew,
[email protected] or (218)-626-4360.