Postdoctoral Position: Landscape Fire and Vegetation Dynamics in Hawaii A postdoctoral research position (Junior Researcher) is available for a spatial ecologist to: (1) scale and model existing plot-level information on fuel loads, restoration treatments, and plant communities (with particular emphasis on threatened and endangered species) to the landscape level; and (2) develop and apply modeling approaches related to fire danger and behavior, and management of native dry forest communities in Hawaii under a variety of restoration and climate change scenarios. We seek a postdoctoral researcher who can combine multiple data sources (plot-based fuel loading and restoration treatments, current and historical plant community composition and structure, potential fire behavior, nonnative ungulate activity, etc.) into models directly applicable to the management of terrestrial ecosystems, including critically endangered plant communities, on Department of Defense installations in Hawaii and throughout the Pacific. Applicants with strong backgrounds in one or more of the following areas are particularly encouraged: statistics; computer programming; modeling; spatial analysis; and fire mapping and modeling. The successful applicant will be part of a team of researchers that is using a suite of field and remote sensing methods to evaluate the potential for restoration to break the nonnative grass/fire cycle in tropical island ecosystems. In addition to the work outlined above, the successful applicant will have some degree of flexibility to develop and pursue their own interests within the larger project.
The position will be based at the USDA Forest Service, Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry in Hilo, Hawaii and/or the University of Hawaii at Manoa in Honolulu, Hawaii. The successful candidate will work closely with researchers at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (Dr. Creighton Litton), the USFS (Drs. Susan Cordell and Christian Giardina), the Carnegie Institution (Dr. Gregory Asner) and the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (Dr. Jarrod Thaxton). In addition, the candidate will interact with other postdoctoral researchers, technicians, students and research assistants as part of daily activities related to the project. Responsibilities include scaling plot-based data to the landscape, model development and analysis, presentations at local and national scientific conferences, publishing in peer-reviewed journals, and outreach with environmental management professionals. A Ph.D. in Natural Resource Management, Ecology, Earth System Science, Geography, or equivalent is required. Strong quantitative skills are a must, and familiarity with fire modeling, mapping, and assessment systems is desirable. See job posting at http://www.pers.hawaii.edu/wuh/Default.aspx (Position #85440T) for more detailed information and to apply. Review of applications will begin October 1, 2010 and continue until the position is filled. Desired start date is November, 2010 or soon thereafter. Inquiries may be sent to [email protected] with “Landscape Postdoc Question” in the subject line, or by calling Dr. Creighton M. Litton at 808-956-6004. -- Jarrod M. Thaxton, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Biology University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez, PR 00681 787-832-4040 ext. 2683 [email protected]
