Ernst Mayr Travel Grants
About
Ernst Mayr grants support research in animal systematics by stimulating taxonomic work on neglected taxa via short visits to museums in order to undertake research needed for the completion of taxonomic revisions and monographs.
These include taxa with numerous poorly described species, genera and families known to have many undescribed species in institutional collections, taxa for which it is unknown what proportion of the nominal species are synonyms and difficult genera without keys. It is not the aim of these grants to support largely phylogenetic studies of taxa in which the species are reasonably well known, or to support biogeographic studies.
Preference is given to studies that use the MCZ's collections and to researchers who wish to examine MCZ specimens from their country of origin, although applications to work at other museums will be considered.
More information
Applications are due October 15 and April 1 each year, by 5:00 PM EST. Decisions are announced within five weeks after the application deadline.
This grant is open to all.
Visa information
The Museum of Comparative Zoology may be able to sponsor a short-term J-1 visa for those traveling to the US. Please contact us for more information.
Non-US citizens currently in the United States on a J-1 visa will need approval from their host institution to accept an Ernst Mayr Grant and visit other institutions in the US.
Expenses covered by the grant
Typical expenses that may be paid from these grants include travel, lodging, and meals for up to a few weeks while conducting research at the museum(s), reasonable services purchased from the host institution and research supplies.
The maximum award is $2,500.
Applications must be submitted electronically through CARAT (Centralized Application for Research and Travel). You can begin your work, save it, and return to it at a later time. Applications (including all supporting documents) are due by 5 pm EST on the due date. To apply, please submit the following via CARAT:
- a short project description and explicit statement of research goals, not to exceed 2 pages
- itinerary
- budget
- curriculum vitae, not to exceed 2 pages
- two letters of support (to be uploaded by the letter writer)
- letter or email from each collection to be visited
Please note the following restrictions in place when applying for this grant.
- US citizen recipients will receive a check mailed to a US address.
- Non-US citizens will receive funds by a wire transfer to their bank.
- Due to current regulations, non-US citizens traveling to the United States will not receive funds in advance of travel.