We are recruiting a graduate student (MS in either Fisheries or Biology) to investigate the role of invertebrate drift in the ecology of juvenile Chinook salmon in the Chena River, an interior Alaskan stream that supports one of the largest runs of Chinook salmon in the Yukon River drainage. The successful candidate will join a team of grad students and other researchers on a project that aims to understand the way habitat conditions influence the distribution, growth, survival, and abundance of juvenile Chinook salmon during their freshwater rearing period. The successful candidate will play a key role because drifting invertebrates are the principle food of juvenile Chinook salmon in fresh water, making benthic and terrestrial production available to the fish. Among others, topics for this part (i.e., drift component) of the study may include the effect of instream woody debris, stream discharge, season, and distance from the source (upstream to downstream) on the density, size, and taxonomic composition of invertebrate drift.
The successful candidate will work in a collaborative team environment with students, university faculty, biologists with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and Native Corporation partners. There will be opportunity to become involved with other aspects of the project, which include work on primary production, benthic and terrestrial invertebrate ecology, and a range of topics in stream fish ecology, which will provide broad training in stream ecology. The successful candidate will have a strong academic record, effective communication and interpersonal skills, field experience, and the ability to work in both team and individual settings. The successful candidate will complete training in boat operation, gun/bear safety, wilderness survival, first aid, and CPR. Work will be based at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and at a field camp on the river during the field season. To apply, submit (via email) a cover letter with a brief review of your research experience, interests and goals (1 page), resume, transcripts, GRE scores, and names of three references to: Dr. Mark S. Wipfli School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences & Dept of Biology and Wildlife Institute of Arctic Biology 209 Irving I Bldg University of Alaska Fairbanks Fairbanks, AK 99775 USA [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.iab.uaf.edu/~mark_wipfli/ To learn more about the project visit www.chenakings.org and to learn more about graduate studies at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, visit www.uaf.edu/gradsch. Position will stay open until filled. Successful applicant may begin work as early as 1 May, 2008.
