Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

Warm-water Aquatic Ecology

Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA

Summer 2018: June 3 to August 12

http://wilsonlab.com/reu/

Overview: We are excited to invite applications from undergraduate students to participate in a National Science Foundation supported summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program focused on the ecology of southeastern ponds, rivers, reservoirs, and estuaries.  Ten undergraduate students will work closely with a team of Auburn University faculty to explore aquatic ecosystems, complete a student-driven research project, participate in a variety of professional development and social activities, develop and lead an outreach project, and share their research findings in a symposium at the conclusion of the program.  Participants will work closely with two or more mentors to develop an interdisciplinary project involving complementary fields, such as community ecology, limnology, evolution, fisheries management, statistics, hydrology, conservation, biogeochemistry, molecular biology, biodiversity, and microbiology.  The program will run from June 3 to August 12, 2018 (10 weeks).

Eligibility: All applicants who are interested in receiving NSF support must currently be a (1) U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or permanent resident and (2) an undergraduate freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior graduating no earlier than September 2018 or a high school senior that will start their undergraduate education the following fall semester after the REU program.  We are especially encouraging students from traditionally under-represented groups in biology (i.e., African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, students with disabilities, first generation college students, and U.S. veterans) as well as students from institutions with limited research opportunities (e.g., community colleges) or students in financial need to apply.

Support: Participants will receive a stipend ($5,500) plus housing and subsistence, financial assistance for travel to and from Auburn, and support for lab and field supplies.  For full consideration, on-line applications must be received by 15 January 2018.

International students: Although not financially supported by our REU Site, we are also open to including a few strongly motivated and self-funded international students in our REU Site research and professional development activities.

For more information about the REU Site, visit http://wilsonlab.com/reu/ or contact Dr. Alan Wilson (wilson@auburn.edu<mailto:wilson@auburn.edu>).

—

Alan Wilson

Associate Professor – Auburn University

School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences

[http://www.wilsonlab.com%3chttp:/www.wilsonlab.com/]www.wilsonlab.com<http://www.wilsonlab.com/> – 334.246.1120

We are seeking a Ph.D. student for a project on the evolution of
resistance to avian malaria in Hawaiian Honeycreepers. Collaborative
work will involve comparative genomics on three closely related
species of amakihi, honeycreepers that have apparent variation in
resistance/tolerance to Plasmodium relictum. The work will be part of
a collaboration funded by the NSF-Ecology and Evolution of Infectious
Disease program. This graduate position will be primarily a lab and
bioinformatics focused project, although there will be some fieldwork
catching amakihi and other birds in Hawaii. The genomics will be
done in concert with Rob Fleischer at the Smithsonian Institution
(https://nationalzoo.si.edu/conservation/robert-c-fleischer) and Loren
Sackett at the University of South Florida (http://secure-web.cisco.com/1CJF-gVv4kLTejKMyKtSA3W8DT_Whz_BkFxbY9nJWSGZkzQOatD6KpWQZdJ8zcR9YFF8EVKf8Gjh9-NbuEFfQnrSbR_pl1TLkiQj__K9Hy2oo_QzeRdQILnaT06oVpVsaXntPC3WQ-9PYWugZhOHZ4x9dsd6kaIU0JlMa2_AFMxK5elbha7VQjEQE7XBk154wnzrF6-hmXXYuPFuPbLaMpeVJpMwTgBzaJtdh2C-ifuVLOX_06CI-VON5tbq_19BJclaiwP3CgcHkdvTUJF4HJcfPoA7V7mBaixQFMFcG0GPzXxI4f9Fhfuj6OGQjY3N_RuWNjqkuGoxlxGvAt0amkIJZnMpBrzFH-6d_K_L8ufomOT6dYNWfktjYPDg20mJUU8ZAcijXhPc5UsytdIUCraOpS73Xv-Jo1yfdgrKUps5uIaG8S1jepVA5UfhLno0GEPkABrHxsxU8TFyZADzCCw/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cassinsackett.com).

Desired Qualifications
– Master?s in Biology or related field (but MS not required for highly
qualified applicants)
– Skills in bioinformatic analyses of vertebrate genomes
– Experience in population genetics and molecular evolution
– Bird handling experience

Graduate program applications should be submitted to the
Graduate College via the Department of Biological Sciences
(https://nau.edu/cefns/natsci/biology/degrees-programs/graduate/),
due January 15, 2018 (but earlier applications are highly
encouraged). Candidates should first contact me at the email below
with a cover letter describing your background, research interests,
and qualifications, as well as a current CV.

Jeffrey Foster, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Pathogen and Microbiome Institute
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZ  86011
email: jeff.foster@nau.edu
website: fozlab.weebly.com

Jeff.Foster@unh.edu

Graduate Assistantships are available in Dr. Cheryl Schultz=92s Conservation Biology Lab. We use a population ecology lens to gain understanding of the ecology of at-risk species and develop conservation and restoration responses to global change. Our work largely focuses on rare butterflies and their habitats in the Pacific Northwest as a model system to address broad ecological questions as well as advance conservation on-the-ground.

We expect to recruit 1-2 new graduate students for Fall 2018 as part of newly funded projects.=20 Graduate students are supported on a combination of research and teaching assistantships during the academic year and grant funding during the summer.

One project is funded by SERDP (Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program) to increase our understanding of the effects of climate-mediated changes in phenology on butterfly population viability. The new student will have the opportunity to develop a project with Puget blue butterfly in the Western Washington Prairies that broadly advances project goals. This is part of a five-year multi-university project.  The new student will have the opportunity to collaborate with PIs, postdocs and graduate students across several institutions. We encourage potential PhD students interested in working on this project to get in touch to learn more and to apply.

A second project relates to non-target effects of herbicides on Oregon silverspot butterfly =96 a high priority project funded by USGS in collaboration with USFWS to assist in reintroduction and habitat restoration for this rapidly declining threatened species.  The research will largely involve greenhouse studies with surrogate butterfly species on butterfly behavior and demography of all life stages (egg, larva, adult). Because of the urgency in understanding these herbicide effects relative to the timing of reintroduction efforts, the new student will conduct initial experiments in Spring/Summer 2018 as a research assistant in the Conservation Biology lab, then formally matriculate as a graduate student for the Fall 2018 semester.  We encourage well-qualified potential MS or PhD students get in touch to learn more and to apply.

Washington State University Vancouver is a new campus in the WSU system located in Southwest Washington just across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon and is close to Willamette Valley and South Puget Sound prairies.  Currently with ~3400 students, it is a new and rapidly growing campus in the WSU system.  Students benefit from outstanding faculty, world-class research, state-

of-the-art facilities and small class sizes. https://cas.vancouver.wsu.edu/science-graduate-programs

Interested students should look at the =93Join us=94 link and send requested information to Cheryl Schultz, schultzc@wsu.edu. https://labs.wsu.edu/conservation-biology/    In addition, Dr. Schultz will be at the Entomology Association of America annual meeting in November and would be happy to meet with potential students while at the meeting.

We are announcing a great opportunity for students interested in an
M.S. degree in tropical conservation biology and environmental
science. Our program at the University of Hawaii at Hilo provides
training in basic, applied, and socio-ecological research that is
relevant to careers in research and natural resource management in one
of the premier places in the world to study ecology, evolution, and
conservation. Based on Hawaii Island, students are immersed in the
extraordinary natural and social landscapes that allow for hands-on
research and training in a variety of marine and terrestrial
environments. The program consists of both thesis and internship
tracks.

Please visit us at:
http://tcbes.uhh.hawaii.edu/documents/TCBESMastersFlier2017.pdf or
http://tcbes.uhh.hawaii.edu/

We would appreciate it if you could pass on this information to
prospective students. Priority deadline for Fall 2018 is December 1.
Please share this with other faculty who advise students about graduate
school opportunities.

Matthew Knope <knope@hawaii.edu>

Positions

Two PhD students are sought to study the influences of habitat connectivity, landscape phenology, climate, transportation infrastructure, or land-cover transitions on North American bird populations and communities.  Possible directions of research include but are not limited to interaction or cumulative effects of these ecological conditions and human dimensions (e.g., social, economic, cultural, or demographic factors).  Students will have considerable latitude and assistance with developing the direction of their work.  National and regional databases will be available for analysis and will enable unique perspectives and new syntheses regarding the macroecological drivers of avian population and community dynamics.  The overarching goals of this work are to improve understanding of the broad-scale ecological and human factors that drive short- and long-term flux in bird populations and communities, and to use this knowledge to inform avian conservation policy, planning, and implementation.  The positions will start in the fall of 2018 in the Department of Biology at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.  Baylor is ranked as a Higher Research Activity institution in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.  The Biology PhD Program is housed in spacious modern facilities, and faculty mentors work closely with each of their doctoral students.  Coupled with the low cost of living in Waco and significant financial support, these positions offer outstanding opportunities for those pursuing a career in ecological research and its application in conservation.

Qualifications

Applicants must have a Master of Science degree in a relevant field.  Training and experience with GIS and statistical methods, through prior coursework or research activities, are essential.  Students should have a strong interest in developing additional expertise in GIS and quantitative methods.  Preference will be given to those who have published quantitative ecological research, who have presented research at scientific meetings, and who have experience working with large databases.  Competitive applicants will have undergraduate and graduate GPAs of 3.5 or higher, verbal and quantitative GRE scores at or above the 70th percentile, and a GRE analytical writing score of 5.0 or greater.  Students with some but not all of these credentials will be considered and are encouraged to submit an application.

Compensation

For up to 5 years, and depending on qualifications, each position will include teaching-assistantship funding ($24,000-$32,000/12 months), tuition remission (up to 20 credits/12 months), health insurance benefits (80% of cost of premium covered), and funding for travel to professional meetings.  Support for a research assistantship may replace some of the teaching assistantship funding during the course of the student’s program.

Application Instructions

To apply, create a single pdf that includes: a letter of interest that describes your career goals and that specifically addresses the position requirements; a resume; unofficial undergraduate and graduate transcripts; unofficial general GRE scores (no more than 5 years old by early February 2018) including percentile information; and a list of three references and their institution, email address, and phone number.  Before submitting an application, carefully consider the requirements for a PhD degree by examining the Department of Biology Graduate Student Handbook (http://www.baylor.edu/biology).  Email your pdf to Professor Kevin Gutzwiller (https://sites.baylor.edu/kevin_gutzwiller), and contact him with questions about the positions.  The deadline for applications is 1 December 2017.

Review Process

After a review of applications, Professor Gutzwiller will invite the most qualified applicants to apply formally to the Ph.D. Program in Biology.  An all-expenses-paid campus visit will be offered to the applicants in the departmental pool that are the most qualified.  Final decisions about admission and an offer of an assistantship will be made by the Baylor Graduate School and the Biology Graduate Committee.

I am looking to recruit a graduate student for Fall 2018 to study the evolutionary interplay of behavior and morphology in the context of sexual selection.

Research in my lab focuses on sexual selection in insects, examining the importance of nutritional and social environments both for the expression of sexually-selected traits and for the process of selection itself. We primarily work on leaf-footed bugs, Family Coreidae. These insects wrestle with their hind legs over territories and have an amazing diversity of hind leg shapes. Ongoing projects in the lab include studies of trade-offs between weapons and testes; the effect of nutrition and social environments on weapon structure, testes size, and male fighting behavior; and the factors influencing mate choice. We are currently reconstructing a phylogeny of the group to test hypotheses of weapon shape evolution.

The successful applicant for this position can choose to work locally in Florida or pursue international field work, at a location such as the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. Prospective students are encouraged to email Christine W. Miller at cwmiller@ufl.edu by November 8th (later inquiries might also be considered). Include in your email a statement including:

1) the kinds of research questions that you would like to pursue, 2) how these fit in with current lab research,

3) a brief overview of your previous academic and research experiences,

4) CV or resume, 5) GRE scores (if you have them), and 6) an unofficial transcript.

Accepted students will be provided a tuition waiver and a competitive stipend. For more information please visit www.millerlab.net.

Information about Gainesville, Florida:

Situated in the rolling countryside of north central Florida, Gainesville is much more than a stereotypical college town. Home of the University of Florida, seat of Alachua County’s government and the region’s commercial hub, it is progressive, environmentally conscious and culturally diverse. The presence of many students and faculty from abroad among its 99,000-plus population adds a strong cross-cultural flavor to its historic small-town Southern roots. Its natural environment, temperate climate and civic amenities make Gainesville a beautiful, pleasant, and interesting place in which to learn and to live.

Time and time again, Gainesville has been named one of Florida’s most liveable cities and ranked among the leaders in the United States – a reputation created by an exceptional combination of local features. Agreeable weather and lovely landscapes, attractive educational and economic opportunities, varied cultural and recreational resources, and a youthful, energetic ambiance all contribute to the standard of living enjoyed by area residents.

Christine W. Miller  | University of Florida Associate Professor of Entomology Entomology & Nematology Department

phone: (352) 273-3917 web: www.MillerLab.net  facebook: @bugweapons

*The Tingley Lab* in Global Change Ecology in the Department of Ecology and

Evolutionary Biology at the *University of Connecticut* seeks creative and

motivated PhD students to join the lab in the Summer/Fall of 2018. Our

research utilizes field data and biodiversity data to explore how

large-scale anthropogenic drivers of change (e.g., climate change, land-use

change, fire regimes) affect geographic distributions and community

interactions over short to long timespans, from years to centuries. Most of

our research explores these topics using birds as the primary study

organism.

Potential research topics include (but are not limited to) 1)

distributional ecology and the mechanisms that define range limits; 2)

temporal change in communities; 3) quantitative methods to understand

spatiotemporal ecological processes; and/or 4) using historical field data

to understand processes of change. Research projects will have

opportunities to draw from extensive existing databases, continental-scale

biodiversity data, as well as collect new field data at current field sites

in eastern and western U.S. mountain ranges. Enthusiasm, excellent written

and oral communication abilities, and strong quantitative skills are

necessary. Backgrounds in ornithology, modeling, and statistics are desired.

*Application process*

Interested and qualified candidates should read through the lab=E2=80=99s

Frequently Asked Questions (http://www.morgantingley.com/join/) and send an

email describing their motivation and research interests along with, at

minimum, a CV, GPA, and GRE scores to morgan.tingley[AT]uconn.edu. Strong

applicants will be contacted for scheduling an informal interview in person

or over the phone. Applications to UConn are due December 15th. Financial

support students is available from research assistantships, teaching

assistantships, and university fellowships, but applications to outside

funding sources are strongly encouraged.

*About the University of Connecticut*

*The University of Connecticut (UConn) has been one of the nation=E2=80=99s leading

public institutions since its founding in 1881. Located in Storrs, UConn=E2=80=99s

main campus is situated in the picturesque rolling forests and fields

quintessential of New England, yet is only 30 minutes from Hartford, and

has close connections to Providence, Boston and New York. The Department of

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology consists of over 30 faculty and 60

graduate students with research spanning nearly all major groups of

organisms. The Department maintains close ties with the Departments of

Physiology and Neurobiology, Molecular and Cell Biology, Marine Sciences,

and Natural Resources Management and Engineering, as well as the Center for

Environmental Sciences and Engineering, which together comprise one of the

largest groups of biologists in the Northeast.*

The Farrior Lab at the University of Texas at Austin is seeking applications for Ph.D. students for Fall 2018. Individuals who are motivated to drive their own research questions and use theory in their work are particularly encouraged to apply. Research in the Farrior Lab focuses broadly on plant ecology with an emphasis in understanding how competitive interactions at the individual level scale up to influence the distribution of plant strategies we see across the globe.

Ongoing projects with opportunities for students include: understanding physiological mechanisms of drought stress, understanding the determinants of forest size structure from the tropics to the temperate zone, and investigating the evolutionary stability of plant species coexistence. Yet research interests need not fit within these projects.

Interested applicants should contact Dr. Caroline Farrior by email (cfarrior@austin.utexas.edu) with a CV (including GPA and GRE scores) and a note describing their research interests and training, including mathematical background when applicable.

Formal applications will be submitted through the UT Austin, Ecology, Evolution and Behavior (https://cns.utexas.edu/eeb-graduate-program) or Plant Biology (https://cns.utexas.edu/plantbio-graduate-program) graduate programs. Both programs provide excellent support and are the home to an impressive set of students. Applications are due December 1, 2017.

Graduate assistantships are available for Ph.D. positions in the Siepielski Lab https://asiepielski.wordpress.com in the Department of Biological Sciences and Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arkansas main campus in Fayetteville, AR (http://biology.uark.edu). Our lab focuses on questions at the intersection of ecology and evolutionary biology. Current projects include examining spatial variation in the mechanisms that maintain species diversity in aquatic food webs, the contribution of adaptive evolution in shaping the demographic processes regulating populations, how species evolve in response to multiple-species interactions, and determining the major features characterizing natural selection in the wild. To explore these topics we use a combination of observational, experimental, meta-analytical, and theoretical approaches.

I am looking for students interested in developing their own project on themes broadly related to those listed above. Ideal applicants would have prior research experience in ecology and/or evolutionary biology, previous coursework in statistics, and a genuine passion to conduct research. Graduate research fellowships are available for highly competitive candidates. Please see http://graduate-recruitment.uark.edu/funding-degree/fellowships.php for additional information on graduate funding opportunities.

Prospective students should check out our lab website https://asiepielski.wordpress.com for additional information. If interested in joining our lab group, please contact me via email (amsiepie@uark.edu<mailto:amsiepie@uark.edu>). In your email, please include the following: 1) a brief description of your research interests, career goals, and why you think our lab would be a good fit for you, and 2) your CV.

Please note that the deadline for Fall 2018 admission into our program is January 15, 2018. All materials should be submitted well before then.

The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, is a Tier I research university located in the Ozark Mountains. The faculty and graduate students at UARK are highly interactive and include an internationally known group of evolutionary biologists and ecologists. We are located in an ideal setting for field-based projects in aquatic systems (AR has more than 2,300 lakes and thousands of smaller ponds, and equally impressive numbers of rivers, streams and creeks). Fayetteville, located in northwest Arkansas, offers a high quality of living at a low cost, an excellent climate, and is a large enough city to offer diverse activities and amenities. Rock climbing, hiking, kayaking, canoeing, and mountain biking opportunities are in close proximity. Fayetteville is one of the top 5 places to live in the USA https://realestate.usnews.com/places/arkansas/fayetteville

Adam M. Siepielski

Assistant Professor

Department of Biological Sciences

University of Arkansas

Fayetteville AR, 72701

Ph: 1-479-575-6357

Web: https://asiepielski.wordpress.com

The Department of Animal Biology at the University of Illinois
is accepting applications for graduate students for admission in
Fall 2018.  We accept applications for both the Master?s (M.S.) and
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees.  We are an interactive group with
expertise in ecology, evolution, behavior, bioinformatics, conservation,
genetics & genomics, physiology, neuroscience, endocrinology, and
morphology. Students take many approaches to their studies including field
work on whole organisms, genomics/bioinformatics, lab experimentation,
and theory. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign also
offers state-of-the-art research facilities in imaging, genomics, and
engineering.  Urbana-Champaign is a pleasant, affordable, university
town with good music and restaurants.  It has its own airport and is
close to three major U.S. cities (Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis).

Students for the Ph.D. are typically funded for 5-years with a
combination of fellowships, research assistantships, and teaching
assistantships.  The deadline for consideration for fellowship
support is December 15, 2017.  We will consider to consider students
for admission until January 1, 2018.  For further information, see
http://www.life.illinois.edu/animalbiology/graduate_program.htm

The following faculty are actively recruiting students:

Philip Anderson – Comparative evolutionary biomechanics in both
vertebrates and invertebrates. Current areas of specific interest
include: examining the evolution of biological cutting/puncture systems;
biomechanical and morphological diversification in deep-time; evolution
of multi-part biomechanical systems.

Alison Bell – Individual variation; animal personality and behavioral
syndromes; neurogenomics; transgenerational plasticity; evolution of
behavior. We primarily study threespined stickleback fish.

Carla Caceres – Population, community and evolutionary ecology;
life-history evolution; ecology of infectious disease; limnology.

Julian Catchen – Evolution of the genome; computational biology and
population genomics; identifying large structural variation in populations
of threespine stickleback; investigating the evolution of the notothenioid
(Antarctic fishes) genome by examining the adaptive radiation of five
notothenioid species. RADseq, assembly, and genetic mapping analytical
method development.

Chris Cheng –  Evolutionary genomic, transcriptomic, physiological and
biochemical changes accompanying cold adaptation and cold specialization
in Antarctic and Arctic fishes. Genetic origins and molecular mechanisms
of evolution of antifreeze proteins and other novel cold-adaptive genes
and functions. Marine biodiversity in polar regions. Field research in
Antarctica and the Arctic.

Becky Fuller – Evolutionary biology of fishes; evolution of color
patterns/color vision; speciation as a function of adaptation to salinity
and genomic rearrangements; speciation in darters and killifish

Mark Hauber – Ecology and evolution in birds; brood parasitism;
comparative chemistry of egg shell pigmentation, acoustic and visual
recognition systems in birds, neuro-ethology and -genomics, seabird
conservation

Ken Paige – Plant-animal interaction with an emphasis on understanding
the phenomenon of overcompensation from ecological, physiological, genetic
and evolutionary perspectives; conservation biology; evolutionary ecology.

Charles Roseman – Evolutionary quantitative genetics, evo-devo, evolution
of the g-matrix  with emphasis on how small changes in development alter
developmental trajectories and adult phenotypes; mammals

fuller@life.illinois.edu