Post Doctoral Research Associate - Conservation Ecologist

University of Massachusetts Amherst • Amherst, MA

74d

About The Position

Amphibians and reptiles face a large number of escalating threats to the viability and persistence of their populations. These threats are multi-faceted, complex, and require advanced quantitative tools to tackle. Therefore, we seek to hire a postdoctoral researcher to work on questions which can provide essential scientific information for conservation and management decision-making related to amphibians and reptiles. We focus on using a combination of decision analysis, quantitative modeling of empirical data, and predictive modeling and forecasting. Examples of projects that the postdoctoral researcher may undertake include estimating the consequences of confiscation and repatriation of illegally collected freshwater turtles using population viability analyses, running simulations for an integrated disease-dynamics model for a chytrid-amphibian system, analyzing amphibian egg clutch count data collected from wetland sites across the Northeast, quantifying the value of amphibians to ecosystems and society, and improving risk models for novel pathogen introduction to naïve host systems. In many examples, the PIs Grant and DiRenzo have preliminary models and data that can be further developed to advance these ideas. We will work with the postdoctoral researcher to identify which project most aligns with their interests. We do not expect that the postdoctoral researcher to work on all of these projects.

Requirements

• PhD in ecology, conservation, herpetology, or other related field.

Responsibilities

• Build/refine a population viability analysis that examines the effect of (re)introducing a diseased individual, an individual with poor genetics, and a diseased individual with poor genetics into a wild population.
• Use simulations to explore the performance of a latent space model describing chytrid-amphibian disease dynamics.
• Use field data to estimate inter-annual amphibian community breeding dynamics.
• Use field data to quantify the multiple dimensions of economic value of amphibians.
• Develop and parameterize a model to improve assessment of Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans environmental suitability for North America.
• Write research reports, papers for publication, prepare code for release, and prepare data for release.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Industry: Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 11-50 employees