The Holliday Lab in the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental
Conservation at Virginia Tech is seeking an M.Sc. student for a funded
project aimed at understanding genetic diversity, population structure,
and hybridization in the endangered sumac Rhus michauxii.
R. michauxii occurs in the southeast United States, primarily in
Virginia and North Carolina. The species is federally listed as
endangered, and the goal with this project is to understand the degree
of local population diversity, population connectivity, and the degree
to which it hybridizes with a related, more widespread species (R.
glabra). The project will involve participating in sampling efforts
during summer of 2019 (i.e., prior to official enrollment, for which an
hourly wage will be provided) and subsequent genotyping-by-sequencing
library preparation and downstream analyses.
Candidates should have a background in biology, environmental science,
ecology, or a related field, and be interested in learning the necessary
computational and statistical tools to complete this project. Please
note that some foreign nationals may not be eligible for this project
due to the sensitive location of some of the field work.
Please send expressions of interest and CV to Dr. Jason Holliday (jah1@vt.edu).