Postdoctoral Opportunity in Applied Ecology
A postdoctoral position is available in Hall Cushman’s lab in the Department of
Natural Resources and Environmental Science at the University of Nevada, Reno.
The lab has recently moved from California to Nevada and is continuing an
existing project in the Bay Area and establishing new ones in the greater Reno
area. Research in the lab focuses on population, community and ecosystem
ecology, with an emphasis on plant invasions, plant-herbivore interactions and
the dynamics of tree and shrub populations. This work has an applied emphasis,
is strongly field-oriented, and relies heavily on the use of experiments and
observational studies stratified across environmental gradients.
The Postdoctoral Fellow will contribute to the lab’s research efforts in two
main areas:
1) The long-term dynamics of aspen populations in the Sierra Nevada and
mountain ranges of the Great Basin and Intermountain West, with emphasis on the
importance of conifer invasion, herbivory and other biotic and abiotic factors
in mediating the health and viability of these biodiverse forests.
2) Cascading effects of reintroducing once-extirpated large mammals on plant
and animal communities and soil processes in coastal California ecosystems (see
Ender et al. 2017, Ecology and Evolution 7:1561–1571).
The Postdoctoral Fellow must be an excellent writer and ecologist, have
experience conducting experiments, collecting observational field data and
working with remotely-sensed data. They must also have well-developed abilities
to analyze large data sets, a strong publication record, and an interest in
collaborating on grant proposals to support ongoing research.
The ideal Postdoctoral Fellow will be an individual who can collaborate
effectively on projects with other lab members as well as develop their own
projects within the lab’s study systems.
The hope is that the position will continue for three years, although this will
be contingent on the postdoc’s performance and productivity as well as funding.
The desired start date for this position is August 15th, although slightly
later dates in 2018 can be discussed.
If you are interested in this position, please send a detailed letter of
interest, CV and the names and contact information of at least three referees
to Hall Cushman at jhcush...@unr.edu.
J. Hall Cushman, Professor & Chair
Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Science
University of Nevada
Reno, NV 89557
775.784.4000 (voicemail)
https://hallcushman.weebly.com/
