POST-DOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP IN STABLE ISOTOPES, FOOD WEBS, AND WATERSHEDS The Center for Reservoir and Aquatic Systems Research (CRASR) at Baylor University is seeking a postdoctoral research fellow with experience in stable isotopes, aquatic food webs, and watershed analysis. The duration of this position is anticipated to be one year, with the possibility of renewal, contingent upon performance and funding availability.
Watershed land use and water quality will continue to be extremely relevant issues from both a scientific and management perspective. The fellow will be addressing the key issues of how anthropogenic activities on the land influence water chemistry and the biota in streams and will be expected to employ stable isotopic analyses using the new stable isotope mass spectrometry laboratory at Baylor to address these linkages in a novel way. The fellow will work under the primary direction of Dr. Ryan S. King in the Aquatic Ecology Lab (www.baylor.edu/aquaticlab). The fellow will examine how watersheds in different geologic and land-use settings influence water quality and aquatic community/food-web structure in central Texas streams and reservoirs and/or in headwater streams of the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, using primarily existing data from these ecosystems. The fellow would be expected to lead the authorship of one or more manuscripts using data from these projects. The fellow would also have the opportunity to develop and/or a field study related to tracing nutrient sources in central Texas watersheds in food webs of streams. The fellow will select streams that differ substantially in their degree of anthropogenic nutrient enrichment using the existing CRASR nutrient data base from >100 locations throughout central Texas. The fellow will characterize stable isotopic ratios from water samples collected from different source water and these to measured isotopic ratios in basal food resources (algae, bacteria) and primary consumers (macroinvertebrates, grazing fishes). Results will have important implications for nutrient management as well as a tracer tool for estimating risk associated with unmeasured compounds discharged into streams and reservoirs by waste-water treatment plants (effluent) and runoff from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), both of which are huge issues in this region. The fellow may also be able to leverage an experiment using the world-class Baylor Experimental Aquatic Research (BEAR) stream facility (http://www.baylor.edu/aquaticlab/index.php? id=45868) test specific hypotheses about sources and their effect on food webs. Additional information about facilities and other resources is available at http://www.baylor.edu/aquaticlab/index.php?id=45883. Qualifications. PhD in aquatic ecology, biogeochemistry, or related field by June 1, 2010. Applicants must have experience in the use of stable isotopes for analysis of food webs in aquatic systems and expertise in isotope mass spectrometry. Experience with current methods in ecological data analysis, particularly using R, will be important for success in this position. Experience using geographic information software (ArcGIS) would also be beneficial. Applicants should be able to work independently and in collaboration with other researchers, possess strong technical writing skills, and possess a U.S. driver's license. Salary. $3700/mo + benefits Application Process Submit a cover letter and CV along with the Baylor online application using the following link: https://jobs.baylor.edu/applicants/jsp/shared/position/JobDetails_css.jsp? postingId=135828 Please direct questions to Dr. Ryan S. King ([email protected]). The application review process will begin 1 March 2010 and will continue until the position is filled.
