Field Assistants Required – North American red squirrels in Kluane, Yukon, Canada

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MaleRattlingWe are looking for volunteers to assist with fieldwork for a number of different time periods: (a) 1 March-30 April/15-May (b) 1 May-15 July, and (c) 1 September-15 October. We will also have two positions that extend from 1 March to 15-Aug.

 

The positions are part of a long-term study of red squirrel ecology, evolutionary biology and physiology. As a member of the study, assistants will be involved with monitoring the reproduction and survival of individuals. Fieldwork will involve live-trapping and handling of animals, radio-telemetry, behavioural observation, and climbing trees to find young in nests. Some positions will also require handling for physiological assays (e.g., blood sampling) This is an excellent opportunity to gain experience working with a collaborative research team on a long-term study of a wild mammal.

 

All fieldwork is carried against the beautiful backdrop of southwestern Yukon, Canada. We will be staying at a rustic field station two hours from Whitehorse, and ~30 min to the nearest town (Haines Junction). Food and accommodation are provided. Volunteers are required to provide for their own travel to Edmonton, Alberta; however, travel from Edmonton to the field station (and back again!) is provided.

 

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Photo by Jessica Haines

Training will be provided and no experience is necessary. An on-site head technician will coordinate the project, in coordination with the PIs. Candidates should have an interest in a number of the following (the more the better!): ecology, evolutionary biology, wildlife, field biology, and animal behaviour. The field camp is remote and low tech (no showers, cell phone service, or internet), so successful applicants must enjoy the outdoors and be able to remain a positive and responsible team member under relatively isolated and demanding conditions. Candidates must be in good physical condition, be willing to climb trees, and have an enthusiasm for learning. We work on ‘squirrel time’, which often involves long work days; as such, applicants must have a strong work ethic. That said, the atmosphere at squirrel camp is friendly and inclusive, and this area is one of the most beautiful in Canada. All nationalities are welcome.

 

If you wish to apply for one of these posts then please send a CV with a cover letter and contact details for three references (with e-mail addresses), by email to Ainsley Sykes (contact info below), by January 30, 2016. Please also indicate the time period(s) you are interested in.

 

Contact: Ainsley Sykes (Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta)

Funded Ph.D. position on Life History Ecology of Red Squirrels

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Jeff Lane is recruiting a Ph.D. student to work in his lab:

I am currently advertising one Ph.D. student opening in my lab in the Department of Biology at the University of Saskatchewan, ideally to begin September, 2015 (January or April, 2016 start dates may also be feasible). Full funding ($20k CAD/yr for 4 years) is guaranteed, but the successful student will be expected to apply for any funding for which they may be eligible (e.g., NSERC post-graduate scholarships for Canadian citizens).

The Project: Life history ecology of North American red squirrels (Ph.D.)

The Kluane Red Squirrel Project (KRSP) was established in the late 1980’s and now represents one of the longest running and most-comprehensive studies of a wild mammal in the world. Researchers from multiple universities are involved and exciting collaborations have produced many important, interdisciplinary findings. A clear strength of this project stems from our ability to link the biology of the population with a key environmental driver (availability of their primary food source – white spruce seed, cached as cones). The advertised project will investigate the causes and consequences of phenological variation (i.e., annual timing of key life cycle events) and how this variation fits within the broader life history phenotypes of individual squirrels. Phenological shifts are now the most often cited ecological responses to climate change and can have substantial consequences for individual fitness and population viability. The project will combine analyses of our long-term data set (comprising data on >10,000 individuals, collected over 10 generations and 25 years) with new field data collection. Quantitative genetics analyses will be used to estimate heritabilities and genetic correlations (i.e., evolutionary potential) in phenological traits and opportunities are available to collaborate with other researchers in energetic physiology, population ecology, endocrinology and animal behaviour. All fieldwork will occur in the spectacular southwest Yukon Territory at KRSP’s field camp.

Relevant literature:

Lane, J.E., L.E.B. Kruuk, A. Charmantier, J.O. Murie and F.S. Dobson. 2012. Delayed phenology and reduced fitness associated with climate change in a wild hibernator. Nature 489: 554-557.

Williams, C.T., J.E. Lane, M.M. Humphries, A.G. McAdam and S. Boutin. 2013. Reproductive phenology of a food-hoarding mast-seed consumer: resource- and density dependent benefits of early breeding in red squirrels. Oecologia 174: 777-788.

Boutin, S. and J.E. Lane. 2014. Climate change and mammals: evolutionary versus plastic responses. Evolutionary Applications 7: 29-41.

The successful applicant will have a GPA >80% (converted to the UofS’ 1-100 scale) over the past two years of schooling and a degree in a relevant discipline (i.e., Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, Physiology, Environmental Biology). Of note, while I certainly appreciate the hard work that is put into obtaining a degree in Biotechnology, I do not view this as relevant experience for these positions. In addition, a passion for fieldwork (in a beautiful, but remote, place), strong scientific communication skills (both written and oral) and statistical proficiency (or a willingness to gain it) is necessary. Evidence of scientific productivity (manuscripts published or in preparation, conference attendance and presentation) is also expected. This position is open to both Canadian and international students.

If you are interested in applying, please submit a cv (including names and contact details of references), a short (1 pg) description of research interests and an unofficial copy of your transcripts to jeffrey.lane@usask.ca. Applications will be evaluated as they’re received. To ensure full consideration of your application, therefore, please submit asap. Any questions can be directed to Jeff Lane.

Thank you in advance for your interest in this position, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

 

Postdoctoral Position in Evolutionary Ecology of North American Red Squirrels

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We are seeking a postdoctoral researcher with expertise in evolutionary ecology and quantitative genetics to investigate the importance of social interactions to adaptation in North American red squirrels.

This position will be based at the University of Guelph, but will be part of the Kluane Red Squirrel Project involving close collaboration among 4 other institutions in North America. The position will primarily involve the analysis of our existing data collected over the past 25 years in up to six populations in the southwestern Yukon Territory, Canada. We have extensive individual life history, food abundance and fitness data for these populations, with growing personality, energetics, endocrine and vocalization datasets. An extensive pedigree has been compiled and all data are spatially referenced within our study area. Furthermore, an ongoing food manipulation experiment has been performed on between 1 and 3 populations since 2004.

Salary is available for two years ($40,000 per year) based on continued satisfactory performance, but high-caliber applicants will also be encouraged to apply for a prestigious NSERC Banting award. The start-date is negotiable.

Interested candidates should provide a copy of their CV, including contact information for 3 references, as well as a one-page summary of potential research questions to Andrew McAdam. Applications are due by July 1, 2015.

Old squirrels are conformists

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A squirrel in the ‘Thunderdome’, photo by Amanda Kelley.

Biologists working in the Yukon have discovered that young red squirrels’ personalities become more similar over time. “Young squirrels have really extreme personalities,” explains lead researcher Amanda Kelley. “But as they mature, their behaviour becomes more average. Really aggressive squirrels tone it down over time, while meek ones become more hostile.”

The researchers assessed squirrel personality by capturing individuals and temporarily placing them in a ‘thunderdome’, essentially a white box with a clear lid. “We video the squirrel’s behaviour in this new environment, and after a set amount of time, show the squirrel a mirror.” The bushy-tailed rodents believe the mirror to be another squirrel of the same size and respond accordingly.

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Amanda Kelley with the Thunderdome in the background, photo by Amanda Kelley.

Squirrels react to the mirror in very different ways. Remarks Kelley, “Some individuals are really confrontational and immediately rush the mirror, tapping it with their little paws, while others retreat to the furthest corner and avoid eye contact.” These thunderdome trials give insight into an individual squirrel’s personality. The mirror test reveals how aggressive a squirrel is, while the time a squirrel initially spends scurrying about gives insight into how active it is. Kelley’s team conducted personality tests for each squirrel at two ages: first, when newly emerged from its mother’s nest, and again eight months later, when squirrels were fully mature.

As with aggression, the researchers found that a squirrel’s activity became less extreme with age. “The busiest squirrels slowed down the most. In fact, very few increased at all,” says Kelley. This suggests that, on the whole, squirrels mellow with age.

A squirrel checks himself out in the Thunderdome mirror, photo by Amanda Kelley.

Kelley and her colleagues hypothesize that having flexible personalities is important for young squirrels. “After a juvenile leaves the nest, it has to strike out on its own and find a territory,” says Kelley. “It’s a very dangerous period, where certain behaviours can have severe consequences.” As squirrels mature, extreme personality types may carry a disadvantage, meaning their success may depend on finding a happy medium between keeping their cool and sticking up for themselves.

The findings were published in the journal Behaviour. Contact Amanda Kelley, Field Coordinator for the Kluane Red Squirrel Project, for interviews or more information.

Theses defences!

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Kayla Deasley (University of Guelph) defended her MSc in August 2014. Her thesis entitled “Red squirrels cause balancing selection on the length of the white spruce cone” is available here Deasley_Kayla_MSc_Thesis

Kristin van Katwyk (University of Alberta) defended her MSc in the Spring of 2014. Her thesis entitled “Empirical validation of closed population abundance estimates and spatially explicit density estimates using a censused population of North American red squirrels” is available here Van Katwyk_Kristin_Spring 2014

Congratulations to Kayla and Kristin!