NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has statutory
obligations to protect marine mammals within its Extended Economic Zone
and beyond. Such protection requires thorough understanding of the
natural history of the various groups, such as cetaceans, pinnipeds, and
sirenians, including all levels of evolutionary relationships. The
marine-mammal collection of over 11,000 specimens at the Smithsonian
Institution’s National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is a result of
long-term collaboration between NMNH and NMFS and is one of the best in
the world. The diversity of this collection allows broadly-based
research on comparative morphology of systematic characters. The large
number of specimens of many species permits analyses of variability
among individuals, sexes, life-history stages. and geographic areas.
Furthermore, the museum’s Laboratory for Analytical Biology, located at
the Museum Support Center, provides the capability for state-of-the-art
analyses for molecular systematics. We expect that the Associate will
work with the National Collection at NMNH using combined morphological
and molecular methods to investigate questions of importance to NMFS.
Possible general directions for the research include (1) examination of
taxonomic problems of complex groups of species and their populations,
(2) phylogenetic and biogeographic investigations using molecular
techniques in combination with morphological characters from specimens
in museum collections, and (3) comparative studies examining evolution
of life-history characteristics or biogeography.
http://nrc58.nas.edu/RAPLab10/Opportunity/Opportunity.aspx?LabCode=26&ROPCD=260352&RONum=B7721
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Daniel K. Odell, Ph.D.
Biological Consulting
Divide, CO 80814
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