The Grainger Lab at the University of Guelph is recruiting two master’s students to start in September 2024 (with the possibility of starting research over the summer). Students will be given the freedom and support to develop their own research topics within the overarching themes of the lab.  

The Grainger Lab studies ecological and evolutionary processes that shape the natural world, and the effects that global change is having on these processes. In particular, we explore the effects of temperature on coexistence, eco-evolutionary dynamics and spatially structured communities. To do this, we use lab and field experiments with plants and insects that test fundamental questions in ecology and evolutionary biology.

Please see www.tessgrainger.ca/research for more information on the research we do.

Due to funding requirements, this opportunity is restricted to Canadian citizens, permanent residents or landed immigrants.

Please email tess.grainger@uoguelph.ca with a few paragraphs outlining your research interests and experience and why you want to join the lab. Please attach your CV (or resume) and unofficial transcripts.

We invite applications for MSc or PhD positions to join a team working on relationships between community and ecosystem processes in coastal ecosystems. The successful candidates will enroll in the graduate program of one of the participating universities in Quebec (Canada): Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC), Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR), Université Laval, McGill University. They will join a diverse and interdisciplinary team led by prof Philippe Archambault (Laval), prof Mathieu Cusson (UQAC), prof Fanny Noisette (UQAR) and prof Frederic Guichard (McGill).

The project aims at developing and testing theories of relationships between community assembly and ecosystem functions in response to multiple stressors. Our focus in on eelgrass meadows and mussel beds of the St. Lawrence Estuary. Our goal is to integrate these foundation species in a mechanistic theory of spatial and temporal heterogeneity in biodiversity-ecosystem function relationships across scales. The collaboration includes the development of mathematical models, the analysis of historical data, and field experiments. We are now seeking applications from candidates interested in conducting field experiments in mussel bed and/or eelgrass meadow ecosystems.

Students will be part of a large and diverse interdisciplinary team combining experimental and computational approaches, with ample opportunity for networking and skill development.  Students will have the opportunity to conduct field work and will gain experience in a variety of experimental techniques (ecosystem fluxes, invertebrate taxonomy, eelgrass phenology, statistical and dynamic modelling).

Applicants must have a Bachelor’s degree relevant to ecology. Research experience in ecology would be an asset. Students will receive funding according to guidelines in places at their university. We will offer a top-up supplement to recipients of major external awards and will be happy to assist candidates with the preparation of their fellowship applications.

We strive to provide equitable support and access to opportunities, and we promote a respectful and inclusive learning experience for all students. People who identify with groups underrepresented in STEM fields are encouraged to apply.

Applicants should send a cover letter outlining their relevant background and research interests, their CV, and the names of 2-3 potential references to frederic.guichard@mcgill.ca. Interviews and formal invitations to apply to the graduate program will follow. Program start date will be either in May or in September 2024.

Supervisors: Dr. Glen Brown & Dr. Peter Kotanen

Herbivores strongly influence plant communities. Changes in abundance of herbivores can cause rapid changes in plant biomass, species composition and ecosystem processes. The mid-continent population of lesser snow geese expanded dramatically in North America during the past 50 years. The increased abundance of geese in combination with their destructive feeding habits has caused the degradation of large tracts of coastal wetlands on their arctic and subarctic breeding range. Long term studies by the Hudson Bay Project (http://research.amnh.org/users/rfr/hbp/) have demonstrated processes of habitat degradation and rapid ecological change that adversely impacts species sharing the coastal habitat.

We seek a PhD student to investigate the drivers of recovery or continued degradation of breeding range habitat, and the outcomes to ecosystems. The student will make use of existing historical ground collected data (e.g. plant biomass), remote sensing, and new field studies to address their questions. 

The student will have the opportunity to directly support wildlife conservation and management and gain experience on a collaborative project with government agencies and partners (Mississippi Flyway Council, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry).  Field work will be based at one or more sites near Churchill, Manitoba (Cape Churchill and La Perouse Bay), Akimiski Island, and the Burntpoint Research Station in Polar Bear Provincial Park, Ontario.

The student will be enrolled in the Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Program, Trent University, and under the supervision of Dr. Glen Brown (Trent University) and Dr. Peter Kotanen (University of Toronto).

Start dates are flexible, January or May 2024.

Salary: A minimum stipend consistent with Trent University policies for PhD will be provided (includes a Teaching Assistantship).

Qualifications: Candidates should have an interest in plant-animal interactions and a solid background in ecology and remote sensing, and an aptitude for statistical and spatial analysis (including geographic information systems and imagery processing), as well as the ability to conduct laborious field work in remote areas for extended periods of time. A willingness to become licensed in firearm use is also required due to the presence of polar bears.

Prospective students should send a letter of interest, a CV, unofficial transcripts, and the names of two references to Dr. Glen Brown (glen.brown@ontario.ca) and Dr. Peter Kotanen (peter.kotanen@utoronto.ca).

The Northern Animal Ecology Lab @ Trent (https://brownecologylab.weebly.com/) investigates the mechanisms driving change in the subarctic, involving interactions among climate, habitat, and wildlife communities. Wildlife adapted to the cold northern climate may be particularly vulnerable at the edge of range near the arctic-boreal ecotone. We study a range of species, including shorebirds, waterfowl, predators (eg. arctic fox), and small mammals. Students will gain experience in field-based research, use of diverse technologies, including remote sensing and drones, and quantitative methods.

I am looking for a MSc student interested in studying the response of native plant populations to human-mediated pollinator decline.

For more information on my lab, check out:

www.christinamariecaruso.com

The student will have considerable freedom to develop their project.  Start date is Fall 2024.

Interested candidates should email me at carusoc@uoguelph.ca. Please include a statement of interest, CV, and transcript (unofficial is fine). Because of funding restrictions, preference will be given to candidates who are Canadian citizens or landed immigrants.

Christina M. (Chris) Caruso
Associate Professor

Department of Integrative Biology

University of Guelph Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1 Canada

A look at the functional genes of soil microorganisms!

Microbial communities are key players for the recycling of soil nitrogen and its return under inorganic forms into the atmosphere and the hydrosphere. By its presence, the tree provides a structured, oxygenated and sustainable habitat modulating soil microbial communities and their efficiency in recycling nitrogen in different forms with contrasting consequences for climate feedback. In a floodplain, the presence of the tree could prevent a strong emission of nitrous oxide and nitrate by promoting either the inhibition of nitrification or complete denitrification. To better highlight the role of the tree as a regulator of microbial functions, the project aims to analyze soil DNA by metagenomics to characterize genes related to the nitrogen cycle along a land-use gradient of anthropogenic disturbance in the floodplain of Lake St-Pierre, where cultivated fields, permanent grasslands and swamp forests co-occur.

We are looking for a candidate who is passionate about microbial ecology and the biogeochemistry of elementary cycles. The student will work within a team of ecologists and molecular biologists located at the Laurentian Forestry Center of the Canadian Forest Service (Natural Resources Canada) and at the University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières under the co-supervision of Christine Martineau (profile) and Vincent Maire (profile). The work will take place both in the field around Lac St-Pierre, recognized as a Ramsar site (info) and in the laboratory. Bioinformatics and statistical analyzes will be an important component of this project. She or he will be based at UQTR (Trois-Rivières) or at the Centre de Foresterie des Laurentides (Quebec) and will be affiliated with the Center for Northern Studies (website) and Center RIVE (website).

A scholarship of $20,000 per year (for two years) accompanies this project, but candidates who already have a major scholarship (e.g. CRSNG, FQRNT) or who will obtain it during the master’s degree may receive other benefits. The student will start in the winter or spring of 2024.

If you are interested in this offer, send by October 15, 2023 to vincent.maire@uqtr.ca the following information: (1) your CV, (2) a transcript including the names of the courses (it may not be official), and (3) a letter of interest.

The Gillooly Lab in the Department of Biology at the University of Florida is seeking 1-2 graduate students (M.S. or Ph.D.) to join our team beginning Fall, 2024. Our research focuses on broad-scale questions in ecology that span a diverse assortment of species and environments. Comparative studies that combine theory and data to explain general patterns in ecological systems based on organismal-level physiology are common in the lab. Current projects include effects of climate change on species’ life histories, causes and consequences of physiological stress, and mathematical modeling of stable isotope ecology. Still, students are welcome to develop their own research programs.

In the Gillooly Lab, we strive to create a fun, supportive, and collaborative atmosphere for all students. This includes a commitment to maintaining a broadly diverse, equitable, and inclusive team.

Interested students should contact Dr. Gillooly by email prior to application (gillooly[at]ufl.edu) and include a C.V. and brief statement of research interests in the message. Deadline for application is 12/1/23. Students accepted into the program are fully funded.

The Gosselin lab (http://faculty.tru.ca/lgosselin/) at Thompson Rivers University, in Kamloops, British Columbia, is seeking applicants for an MSc position, with an intended start date of January 2024.  Benthic invertebrates, such as barnacles, snails, mussels, tubeworms, crabs and hermit crabs, are the dominant animals in coastal habitats; they are also an important part of the coastal food web linking primary producers to upper-level predators, and several benthic invertebrates are either harvested or reared in aquaculture as food for humans. The abundance, and even the persistence, of these populations over time is largely dependent on survivorship through the early juvenile phase, a highly vulnerable and critical period of life of benthic marine invertebrates. Research in our lab focuses primarily on the ecology of the early juvenile phase. Our work aims to understand the factors that control survivorship through the early juvenile phase, and especially the impacts of climate change.

The upcoming MSc project will explore effects of climate change on intertidal invertebrates, examining tolerance thresholds of early juvenile invertebrates and chronic effects of warming conditions and increasing desiccation stress on early juveniles. The project will involve field collection and experimentation in pristine coastal habitats as well as laboratory experimentation.  Field research work will be carried out during the spring and summer, primarily at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre  on beautiful Vancouver Island, and at various field sites in Barkley Sound. Students will spend the rest of the year (Sept-April) on campus at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, BC.

Qualifications:

We are looking for individuals with a keen interest and enthusiasm for marine invertebrate ecology and a background in ecology and evolution.  The following are not required but will be considered favourably: research experience acquired by completing an Honours or Directed Study program during your bachelors degree or by working as a research assistant with a professor at your university or in a government laboratory; prior course work or work experience in population ecology, aquatic invertebrate biology, or ecological field techniques; field courses in ecology or invertebrate biology. To qualify, applicants must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents and have a BSc in a relevant field. The selected student will be admitted through the MSc in Environmental Science program at Thompson Rivers University.

Stipends to support the student in this MSc position will be provided through Graduate Research Assistantships and opportunities for Teaching Assistantships. 

Start date of this position: January 2024.

Application instructions:

Review of all applications received will begin on 16 October 2023, and will continue until position is filled. If interested, please send a Curriculum vitae, post-secondary transcripts, and a letter describing your academic interests and qualifications and outlining why you want to carry out a graduate degree in marine ecology, via email, to:

Dr Louis Gosselin

Department of Biological Sciences, TRUlgosselin@tru.ca

Location: McGill University

Start date: Autumn 2024

The Ricciardi Lab at McGill University (http://redpath-staff.mcgill.ca/ricciardi/) is recruiting graduate students at the PhD and MSc levels for projects that investigate 1) how invasive species and climate warming are altering freshwater communities in the St Lawrence River and in Quebec lakes; and 2) how the impacts of invasive fishes and crayfishes vary across space and time.

The students will be able to interact with an exceptional group of ecologists, conservation biologists, and evolutionary biologists in the McGill Biology department. They will collaborate with government scientists in Environment & Climate Change Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the Quebec government (MFFP). They might also have opportunities to work briefly in these government labs. Furthermore, the student will be able to take a unique McGill graduate-level course in Invasion Ecology.

The candidate will have completed a BSc Honors or MSc degree by Spring 2024, and have strong independent research experience and training in aquatic ecology. We are aiming this advertisement primarily at Canadians and permanent residents of Canada. American PhD applicants with strong academic records and at least one peer-reviewed publication are invited to apply, as they may qualify for a university award.

Preference will be given to candidates who are likely to be awarded a federal (NSERC) or Quebec FQRNT scholarship. Students who are successful in obtaining a major Canadian scholarship for their PhD studies will be given an additional top-up annual salary ($5,000) as a bonus.

Applicants must meet the requirements of the graduate program of the Department of Biology (https://www.mcgill.ca/biology/graduate-studies) to enrol for September 2024. Please provide as a single pdf:

1) An up-to-date c.v.

2) University transcripts (a scanned copy or unofficial pdf is acceptable).

3) Contact information for at least two referees.

4) A statement (~ 1-2 pages) of graduate research interests and relevant experience.

Submit applications as a single combined pdf, if possible, to Prof. Anthony Ricciardi (tony.ricciardi@mcgill.ca). Applications will be accepted until 31 December 2023 or until a student is chosen.