Graduate Assistantships are available in Dr. Cheryl Schultz’s Conservation Biology Lab. We use a population ecology lens to gain understanding of the ecology of at-risk species and develop conservation and restoration responses to global change. Our work largely focuses on rare butterflies and their habitats in the Pacific Northwest as a model system to address broad ecological questions as well as advance conservation on-the-ground.
We expect to recruit 1-2 new graduate students for Fall 2018 as part of newly funded projects. Graduate students are supported on a combination of research and teaching assistantships during the academic year and grant funding during the summer. One project is funded by SERDP (Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program) to increase our understanding of the effects of climate-mediated changes in phenology on butterfly population viability. The new student will have the opportunity to develop a project with Puget blue butterfly in the Western Washington Prairies that broadly advances project goals. This is part of a five-year multi-university project. The new student will have the opportunity to collaborate with PIs, postdocs and graduate students across several institutions. We encourage potential PhD students interested in working on this project to get in touch to learn more and to apply. A second project relates to non-target effects of herbicides on Oregon silverspot butterfly – a high priority project funded by USGS in collaboration with USFWS to assist in reintroduction and habitat restoration for this rapidly declining threatened species. The research will largely involve greenhouse studies with surrogate butterfly species on butterfly behavior and demography of all life stages (egg, larva, adult). Because of the urgency in understanding these herbicide effects relative to the timing of reintroduction efforts, the new student will conduct initial experiments in Spring/Summer 2018 as a research assistant in the Conservation Biology lab, then formally matriculate as a graduate student for the Fall 2018 semester. We encourage well-qualified potential MS or PhD students get in touch to learn more and to apply. Washington State University Vancouver is a new campus in the WSU system located in Southwest Washington just across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon and is close to Willamette Valley and South Puget Sound prairies. Currently with ~3400 students, it is a new and rapidly growing campus in the WSU system. Students benefit from outstanding faculty, world-class research, state- of-the-art facilities and small class sizes. https://cas.vancouver.wsu.edu/science-graduate-programs Interested students should look at the “Join us” link and send requested information to Cheryl Schultz, schul...@wsu.edu. https://labs.wsu.edu/conservation-biology/ In addition, Dr. Schultz will be at the Entomology Association of America annual meeting in November and would be happy to meet with potential students while at the meeting.
