Seeking to Fill Graduate Assistantship: MS or PHD Student The goal of the project will be to evaluate the behavioral and demographic responses of the federally-threatened piping plover to the breeding-season habitat created by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012 on Long Island, New York. We will compare behavior and demography of plovers between two areas on Long Island that were breached and filled and a third area breached and unfilled. We will also study additional areas that were not breached. This project will build upon earlier work on Long Island and in other sites by Virginia Tech students with the goal to increase our understanding of the impacts of storm-created habitats and subsequent beach fill projects on piping plover recovery.
This advertisement is for either a M.S. student or Ph.D. student for the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation at Virginia Tech. Students applying for a Ph.D.-level position must have completed their M.S. in a related field. This student will work with Project Principal Investigator and advisor Jim Fraser, and co-Principal Investigators Sarah Karpanty and Dan Catlin. Data collected will include shorebird behavior, abundance and density, nesting success, survival, prey community abundance and structure, and habitat selection. A research assistantship at a competitive level will be provided during the field-work and thesis/dissertation preparation. Expected duration of assistantship and project is 3 years for a M.S. student to 5 years for a Ph.D. student. Synopses of similar projects can be found at http://fishwild.vt.edu/faculty/fraser.htm , http://fishwild.vt.edu/faculty/karpanty.htm, http://fishwild.vt.edu/Catlin/index.html, and http://fishwild.vt.edu/vtshorebirds/index.html. This program would be excellent preparation for students wishing to work for a resource management agency or conservation NGO or in a research career in an academic or other setting. Duties: Complete study design in consultation with major professor (Jim Fraser) and co-investigators (Karpanty and Catlin); collect behavioral, demographic and ecological data to test hypotheses and fit models; supervise technicians; operate trucks, boats, and ATVs; coordinate with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, the State of New York, Suffolk County, and other local town officials as well as other researchers; analyze data, write reports and publish research results in refereed journals with advisor and other investigators. Fieldwork involves long, hot days, early mornings, and late nights. Incumbent will live at a field site for 56 months each year and may live in remote National Park Service housing during that time. Part of the study will be conducted in the Fire Island Wilderness Area http://www.nps.gov/fiis/planyourvisit/fireislandwilderness.htm and in Smith Point and Cupsogue County Parks http://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Parks/Parks.aspx, but note that this is in Long Island, New York, a densely settled urban area. This will be an excellent project for someone wishing to make a research contribution to basic science and, simultaneously, to the design of avian conservation strategies. Position is subject to receipt of funding, expected in February-March 2013. Fieldwork starts March 2013 or as soon as funds are received, but start date for student is negotiable. Qualifications: B.S. (for M.S.) or M.S. (for Ph.D. students) in Wildlife Science, Ecology, Conservation Biology or closely allied field, with excellent grades, GRE scores and references. Ability to get along with cooperators and also with beachgoers, not all of whom love piping plovers. Previous field experience required, preferably with birds. Experience with bird capture and handling preferred. Evidence of scientific writing skills (i.e. academic papers, publications, etc.) and a commitment to scientific publication. Coursework or experience with population and/or behavioral ecology desired. Willingness to work long hours in the hot sun in remote conditions. To apply: If you plan to apply, send a brief email immediately to Shannon Ritter ([email protected]) to let us know you plan to do so. To apply, email C.V., 1 page letter of application, degree titles, GPA for all degrees, GRE scores and percentiles, scanned unofficial transcripts, and names and contact information for 3 references, including at least one field supervisor and two academic references. Finalists will be asked to participate in a phone interview and to apply to the Virginia Tech graduate school. Send information to Shannon Ritter ([email protected]). Candidate selection will begin immediately and will continue until position is filled. We recommend applying as quickly as possible. Fieldwork starts in March, though it is not imperative that the graduate student start at that time.
