Job Opportunity: Post-doctoral Research Associate, Migratory Birds and Climate Change
USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center seeks a post-doctoral research associate for a minimum of 13 months to study how land use and system change, including climate change, may affect migratory birds, and how these effects may alter federal strategies for land acquisition and related management decisions. There are a number of national programs that underpin the conservation and management of migratory birds, including the Land and Water Conservation Fund, Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, and North American Wetland Conservation Act, among others. Public natural resource managers face difficult decisions related to land acquisition and other investment strategies given vast uncertainty related to the spatial and temporal distribution of limiting habitats and changes in land use related to socio-economic needs and changing climate. Recognizing these important decisions and associated uncertainty, the USGS National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center convened a workshop with managers of migratory bird habitat and scientists in migratory bird ecology to identify critical uncertainties that affect land acquisition decisions and climate science needs. The postdoctoral associate will articulate and evaluate multiple working hypotheses related to climate and land-use effects on migratory bird populations in a decision analytic framework, and identify research priorities to inform management decision making. The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC) is to provide the information, scientific understanding, and technologies needed to support the sound management and conservation of the nation’s biological resources. The focus of the Center's mission and vision for the future is to continue its dynamic international, national, and regional leadership in wildlife research by generating, interpreting, evaluating, and transmitting the scientific information needed to better address the pressing problems of managing our nation's biological resources, especially those under the stewardship of the Department of the Interior, and other Federal and non-Federal partners. The primary means of gathering this information is through the use of scientific methods applied to monitoring resources and conducting experiments. The ideal candidate will have a background in ecology and conservation of migratory birds and climate change effects on wildlife, with excellent communication skills, and evidence of success in publishing in peer-reviewed journals. Preferred candidates will also have experience in decision analysis, population ecology, and quantitative ecology. Candidates must be U.S. citizens and have received their Ph.D. within the last 5 years. This position is located in Laurel, MD. If interested, send CV, letter of application, and names and contact information for three references to Drs. Jim Lyons (jely...@usgs.gov) and Michael Runge (mru...@usgs.gov), USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, 12100 Beech Forest Road, Laurel, MD 20708. Closing date: 18 August 2017.
