Graduate Research Assistantship (Ph.D.)
Illinois Natural History Survey
Prairie Research Institute
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Project Description
A Ph.D. Graduate Student Assistantship is available at the University of Illinois to evaluate invasive carp movement and aggregating behavior in the Upper Mississippi River using a combination of GPS and acoustic tags to help guide invasive carp management. For effective invasive carp management, there is a need to maximize efficient removal of invasive fish from management zones and therefore, being able to locate and predict aggregations is extremely valuable, especially in low-density invasive carp zones.
This position will work closely with a network of state and federal agencies from Illinois to Minnesota to better understand invasive carp habitat use and aggregation in low/medium-density populations. The Upper Mississippi River, upstream of Lock and Dam 19, is considered a low-medium density population due to the passage being completely restricted to the lock chamber at LD19, but populations are sufficiently large to reproduce with reproduction documented as far upstream as Pool 16. Most information on invasive carp habitat use in the Upper Mississippi River has come from contracted removal efforts, and passive and manual tracking acoustic telemetry, which are powerful tools but have spatial and temporal limitations to understand fine-scale conditions that drive invasive carp movement and fine-scale habitat use.
This research will rely on cutting-edge, GPS-enabled tags to better understand the movement and aggregation behavior of invasive carp. GPS-monitored fish will also be tagged with acoustic tags to leverage the extensive Innovasea passive receiver network on the Upper Mississippi and to evaluate tag retention, tag mortality, battery life, and detection overlap. Location information will be used to directly inform and mobilize harvest crews, to help feed ongoing predictive harvest models, and to visually locate aggregations using aerial verification techniques. There may also be opportunities for fine-scale habitat exploration using side-scan sonar mosaics and LIDAR to further refine drivers and habitat resolution.
This will be a multi-year approach to understanding invasive carp movement and aggregation to aid management and would rely on intensive river fieldwork and GPS-enabled and acoustic tag monitoring in the spring and fall, coordination with contracted fishermen and UMR subbasin invasive carp state and federal partners, and IRBS biologists. This position will also help lead invasive carp monitoring and tagging crews in the field and this position will require a balance of field, lab, coursework, and office responsibilities.
This position will complete coursework through the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign NRES (Natural Resources and Environmental Science) program and work closely with scientists at the Illinois River Biological Station in Havana, Illinois. The Illinois River Biological Station (https://illinois-river-bio-station.inhs.illinois.edu/) is a collaborative and cohesive unit, and it is imperative that the student is able and willing to work well with others and be versatile.
Qualifications
- M.S. in fisheries biology, biology, or a related field is required.
- Must have a valid driver’s license.
- Must be able to swim.
- Must have strong computer, computational, and analytical skills, and have the ability to work independently and in a group.
- Must have a competitive GPA.
- Experience operating small watercraft on riverine systems is preferred. Proficiency using GPS and GIS technology is preferred.
- The selected applicant will be required to work long hours in adverse weather conditions.
- Applicants with a strong background in fisheries and aquatic ecology research, telemetry, statistical modeling using R and GIS software, individual-based modeling, and stock assessment are preferred.
Salary and Appointment: This position includes a 50% research assistantship with a tuition waiver through the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science (NRES) beginning in Spring 2024. The current monthly stipend for this assistantship is $2,768.00 plus a tuition waiver.
This position is contingent on the selected applicant’s ability to apply and be accepted into the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science (NRES).
Start date: January 2025 (Spring semester)
To Apply: For full consideration, applications should be submitted no later than September 1, 2024. To be considered for this position, please email 1) a cover letter that explains your interest and qualifications, 2) a transcript (unofficial is acceptable), 3) C.V. (including 3 references) to Dr. Jim Lamer @ lamer@illinois.edu (reference “Graduate Application” in the subject line). Any application that does not include all 3 of these required documents will not be reviewed.
For questions, please contact Dr. James Lamer, Illinois Natural History Survey, by email at lamer@illinois.edu or by phone at 309-543-6000.