JOB: Research Assistant in Rocky Mountain Insect Ecology (3 month position)
Job Description: The USDA, Agriculture Research Service, Northern Plains Agriculture Research Laboratory in Sidney, MT is seeking an enthusiastic and hard-working individual to serve as a biological science aide. Our research focuses on grassland insect and rangeland ecology; specifically how interactions between grasshoppers and Mormon crickets affect Mormon cricket and grasshopper diets, insect immunity to pathogens, and grassland health.
Work may include sampling grasshoppers, Mormon crickets, and other rangeland insects in large scale experiments, sampling rangeland plants, setting up and conducting manipulative experiments in the field and lab. Most field work will be conducted in subalpine meadows at 9000 feet elevation in the Bighorn Mountains in northern Wyoming. A willingness to drive on overnight travel to sites in Wyoming will be required.
Salary: $11.68 – 12.74 per hour (GS-2 – GS-3) dependent on experience and education. Dorm-style, shared housing is available on location for ~$150 per month, including utilities, internet and basic cable TV.
Dates: Starting June 10th and continuing through the middle of September.
Qualifications: The candidate must be a US citizen. Additionally, the candidate should be physically fit, able to walk rapidly over rangeland, and comfortable spending long hours outside at high elevation. The candidate will need a driver’s license. Willingness to work long days, and some weekends when necessary is also a must. Undergraduate course work in ecology, entomology, range or environmental sciences, and previous field work experience is preferred, but not required.
Application process: Please send cover letter, resume, and names and contact information of two references (electronically) to David Branson (dave.branson@ars.usda.gov). Be sure to include available start and end dates. In your cover letter and please describe any experience or coursework you have in relevant areas such as field ecology, entomology, or plant identification In your cover letter or resume.
Evaluation of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. For more information on the grasshopper research program
visit: http://bit.ly/2v1SHRb or http://bit.ly/2D5bppW or contact us directly.