Masters Research Assistantship: Floodplain Reforestation to Enhance Fisheries and Food security

Project overview and responsibilities:   

In tropical wetlands, fruit-eating fishes play a pivotal role in maintaining ecosystem function and biodiversity via seed dispersal; in turn, floodplain forests provide food to sustain diverse and productive fisheries. Despite their ecological importance, frugivorous fish populations rapidly decline due to overexploitation and the clearcutting of floodplain forests. Augmenting populations of key tree species in floodplains will increase food availability for fruit-eating fishes and enhance fish populations at multiple spatial and temporal scales. The aim of this research is to identify key tree species and locations for floodplain silviculture to enhance fruit for fish. 

The student will work with Drs. Sandra Correa at Mississippi State University, Elizabeth Anderson and Paulo Olivas (Florida International University) and Professor Santiago Duque (Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Leticia).  

Location: This position is primarily based on the MSU campus in Starkville, Mississippi. Trips to conduct fieldwork in the Amazon (Colombia and possibly Brazil) are expected in years 1-2. 

Duties: The first phase (year 1) will focus on developing a silviculture catalog of plant species consumed by fish and mapping sites where floodplain replanting is being carried out across Western Amazonia. The second phase (year 2) will focus on developing Species Distribution Models across Western Amazonia for silviculture candidate species. The student is expected to prepare reports and manuscripts for peer-review publication, present results at professional conferences, provide teaching assistantship support in year 2, and complete the requirements for an M.S. degree in 2 years. 

Qualifications: A bachelor’s degree in forestry, forest ecology, natural resources, geography, or a related field is required, as well as knowledge of wetlands, forests, tree sampling methods, and ecological theory. Statistics, GIS, and R programming skills are highly desirable. Excellent oral and written communication skills in English and Spanish are required. A TOEFL score of 550 PBT or 79 iBT (Internet-Based Test) or an IELTS score of 6.5 (International English Language Testing System) is required for non-native English speakers. GRE scores are required.