I have an opportunity available for a student to work on a PhD at Louisiana State University, with fieldwork to be conducted at the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP), near Manaus, Brazil.
The student will be involved in ongoing bird research at the BDFFP, especially spot-mapping, mist netting, and following flocks in continuous forest, fragments, and second growth.
The student will also be expected to develop an independent project on some aspect of ecology of birds in fragmented landscapes.
The ideal candidate will be prepared to learn the avifauna of the site and willing to develop a creative dissertation topic that fits into the existing bird research program.
Base-level funding is in place, but the student may need to pursue additional support depending on his or her research.
The BDFFP handles infrastructure and logistics of fieldwork at the field sites (see http://pdbff.inpa.gov.br/). The BDFFP is based at the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA), providing students with the opportunity for lab work and interaction with INPA researchers and students, including an active ornithology program.
Several other faculty and students at LSU are also involved with the BDFFP, and many more work elsewhere in the Neotropics, making LSU an excellent place to study tropical biology (Baton Rouge also has a climate like Amazonia for much of the year).
The ideal candidate will have an MS by fall of 2013 and will have previous tropical experience. I’m especially interested in Brazilian or other South American students. The position will be available beginning in January of 2014, although the student could begin in summer 2014. For more information about the project, see elsewhere on this website, then contact me. Do not apply directly to LSU. Note that the GRE and TOEFL will need to be done before any application can be made.
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