We're hiring!
The Department of Forest Resources seeks a postdoctoral associate interested in conducting an integrated analysis of breeding bird and vegetation response to fire in sensitive wetland habitats in Northern Minnesota, USA. This position will join the Montgomery Lab, an active ecology lab group at the University of Minnesota led by Dr. Rebecca Montgomery and composed of undergraduate, M.S., and Ph.D. students.
The Montgomery Lab's research examines the impact of the season of prescribed burning (spring, summer, fall) on woody and herbaceous vegetation and breeding birds in disturbance-dependent shrub carr habitat. Shrub carrs (also called lowland brush) are lowland habitats composed of a mosaic of willow-dogwood-alder thickets and wet sedge meadows. Occasionally, more acidic peatlands are interspersed.
The postdoctoral associate will work with existing datasets collected pre-burn, one year post-burn, and three-to-five years post-burn. Breeding birds were surveyed using point counts and vegetation was surveyed using plot-based sampling of woody vegetation composition and abundance and herbaceous composition and cover. Qualitative data are available on fire conditions. First year avian point count and woody vegetation data have been analyzed for two M.S. theses.
The Montgomery Lab seeks candidates interested in conducting an integrated analysis of the data from all sample years and producing several peer-reviewed publications as a result. This position also will have the opportunity to interact with agency partners in the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife.
Dr. Montgomery is committed to supporting professional development and will work with the post-doctoral associate to create an individual development plan aimed at meeting professional development goals.
This position is available immediately and is funded through June 30, 2024, at the least.
Apply now!