City Light’s 2026 Wildlife Research Grant Recipients

Bats, lynx, and wolverines, oh my! After an Earth Month full of amazing animals, we are thrilled to announce groups from Woodland Park Zoo, Home Range Wildlife, and the University of Washington as our 2026 Wildlife Research Grant recipients.

How Were Grantees Selected?

The Wildlife Research Advisory Committee selected research proposals to study multiple carnivore species, lynx, and bats, respectively.

Read on to learn about each recipient.

The University of Washington: Bats and Their Habitats

Help us welcome our newest grant recipients from The University of Washington! Their project “Bat Community Distribution and Phenology in the North Cascades Ecosystem” will include a statistical model that helps conservationists understand where bats live and how they behave amid shifting climate threats, habitat loss, and a deadly and devastating illness called white-nose syndrome.

Participating researchers say bats are essential to our region because they “contribute to biodiversity and provide essential ecosystem services.” They hope this modeling will provide information to agencies who are invested in protecting them.

Woodland Park Zoo: Global Warming Impacts Cascades Carnivores

We are honored to continue funding Woodland Park Zoo’s Cascades Carnivore Research in the North Cascades. The project is co-led by Woodland Park Zoo and Washington State University biologists who track and monitor vulnerable animal populations like wolverines and Canada lynx. These animals are important to the health of the Cascade Range, but wildfires and decreased snowpack threaten their habitats.

Collaborative efforts like this allow natural resource managers to understand how wildlife reacts to habitat changes so we can best protect them under changing climatic conditions.

Hear directly from the program director get a glimpse of some of the animals the zoo has spotted on their wildlife camera in this short video.

Home Range Wildlife: Lynx Find New Hunting Ground After Wildfires Burn in the North Cascades

Another repeat grantee, Home Range Wildlife will use City Light grant funds for their ongoing project “Lynx Habitat Use in the Face of Increasing Fire in the North Cascades.” It’s the first of its kind “to examine how lynx use regenerating megaburns (regrowing forests after large-scale wildfires),” according to Co-Founder and Research Director Carmen Vanbianchi.

She says that information is important when it comes to supporting lynx whose habitats have been affected by a huge increase in wildfires caused by climate change. By studying lynx, Home Range researchers realized the cats have been able to regain territory within burned areas by hunting in places full of young saplings.

“Regaining lynx habitat post-fire is a positive step for North Cascades lynx,” says Carmen. “However, these regenerating forests are in danger of reburning in future megafires. Home Range is working hard to learn more about the specific ways lynx use burned landscapes.”

The Research Continues

We are proud to partner with these outstanding organizations doing research that supports wildlife as climate change continues to affect our region. Visit our Wildlife Research Grants Program page to learn more about its history, the application process, and past funding recipients, and leave a comment with what you’d like to know about City Light’s conservation efforts!