Assistant Unit Leader: USGS Cooperative Research Unit Fisheries and/or Wildlife Management

The Mississippi Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research unit is seeking the next generation of conservation scientists who are eager to step forward and solve pressing conservation problems and emerging threats. The candidate is expected to develop an aquatic or terrestrial research program that addresses the big-picture drivers of invasion ecology across large geographical landscapes, such as the vast alluvial valley of the Mississippi River, the coastal plains ecosystems, or the catchments in the North American Southeast. Importantly, science-based products of this research should provide managers in Mississippi, the region, and beyond with large-scale, implementable solutions. The incumbent research program may address the following grand-scheme aspects: (1) system impacts of invasive species and responses to directed management; (2) mechanisms of invasion; (3) understanding the causes and consequences of large-scale environmental changes (past, present or projected); (4) effectiveness of alternative management actions at landscape-scales to maintain and restore habitats and ecosystem function; and (5) habitat restoration solutions for post-invasion resilience in communities and ecosystems. The candidate will teach graduate level classes in their area of expertise, supervise graduate students and/or post-doctoral fellows and may pursue additional research relevant to applied fish and wildlife management. The Mississippi Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit works closely with state and federal cooperators to conduct research that supports management of fish and wildlife populations in Mississippi and throughout North America. Unit scientists help prepare graduate students for careers in government and academia. The Unit offers a unique collaborative partnership among the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, MSU, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Wildlife Management Institute, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service whereby partners work together to design and conduct research that helps solve complex environmental issues. The Assistant Unit Leader (AUL) will serve in a dual capacity, employed and paid by the USGS, yet holding a separate MSU faculty appointment, without tenure, at a professorial level commensurate with experience and starting at the Assistant or Associate Professor level. The academic appointment will be made in the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Aquaculture. All MSU faculty engage in teaching, research, and service, with research programs supplemented or supported by extramural funding.