[Coral-List] Ph.D. position in Quantitative Behavioral Ecology of Reef Fish in the Gil Lab (CU Boulder)

[Mike Gil]

Dear Coral-List,
Please see the ad below for a well-funded Ph.D. position in my lab.
Individuals with a Master's degree and/or professional experience are
especially encouraged to apply.
Thank you!
Mike

*Ph.D. position in Quantitative Behavioral Ecology of Reef Fish in the Gil
Lab (CU Boulder)*

The Gil Lab (Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of
Colorado, Boulder) is recruiting a Ph.D. student to work independently and
collaboratively on empirical and theoretical research focused on achieving
a quantitative understanding of animal decision making and its ecological
consequences in the face of environmental change. The student would be
working under a new NSF grant
<https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2222478&HistoricalAwards=false>,
and would work closely with PI Dr. Mike Gil and a team of national and
international collaborators on field-based research on coral reef fish
behavior and associated statistical and theoretical modeling. Field methods
will center on high-throughput data collection, utilizing video camera
arrays and computer vision to extract quantitative metrics on fish movement
and interactions. Analysis of field data will include developing machine
learning-assisted image-processing pipelines, and formulating and fitting
novel algorithmic models to extensive datasets. Empirical insights will
inform the development of community- and system-scale computational and
analytical models to predict population dynamics and ecosystem state shifts
in response to regional and global disturbances. While extensive,
cross-disciplinary collaboration is central to this position, there will be
ample opportunities for independent projects as well. The successful
applicant will be guaranteed 5 years of support, through a combination of
teaching assistantships and (mostly) research assistantships, including
summer salary; this currently amounts to a starting annual salary of ~$34K
USD per year. Travel expenses for field work will be covered by the PI.

*Desired Background/Qualifications:*
A strong quantitative background is required. Specifically, experience in
such areas as programming (e.g., in Python, R), code
optimization/parallelization, machine learning, computer vision,
differential equations, agent based modeling, and/or statistical model
formulation and fitting is desired. Experience with field-based ecological
research in aquatic ecosystems would be useful but is not required.
Individuals with backgrounds/experience in applied mathematics, computer
science, and/or related fields with a strong desire to combine models and
data, as well as ecology and animal behavior, are especially encouraged to
apply.

*To apply:*
Please complete an online application here:
https://forms.gle/bwqSFj9Cx3tkGBiz7. Top-ranked candidates will be
interviewed on a rolling basis . The selected candidate will be required to
apply to the EBIO graduate program
<https://www.colorado.edu/ebio/graduate/admissions>, with an application
deadline of December 1, 2022. You can read more about the Gil Lab here:
https://GilLab.org <https://gillab.org/>.