Undergraduate Research Assistantships

Undergraduate Research Assistants / Gordon and López Sepulcre Labs

Term: Fall

Project Description
This Gordon Lab and López Sepulcre Lab project investigates the impact of artificial light at night (ALAN) on the development, toxicity, and color of Monarch butterflies. The ultimate goal of this research is to work with urban planners to provide protection from ALAN along the Monarch migration route and beyond.  This is a 10-15 hour per week research credit. We are looking for someone that can start as soon as possible.

Responsibilities will include the following:

• Watering plants
• Collecting monarchs from field experiment
• Checking butterflies for OE parasite
• Dissecting butterflies
• Taking photos of wing samples
• Conducting geometric morphometrics
  • Will gain experience landmarking and running PCA
• Color analysis in Adobe Photoshop
• Opportunities for analysis and writing

Location
Corson-Mudd Hall and the Insectary Building at Cornell. Additional work will take place locally around Ithaca, NY with transportation provided.

Who should Apply?
No experience necessary. We are looking for someone eager to gain hands on experience with husbandry of Monarchs and behavioral ecology. We value diversity and inclusion and seek applicants all races, genders, and backgrounds.

How to Apply
Contact Hannah Gurholt (hg459@cornell.edu) with: (1) a recent resume including your major, relevant coursework, previous work/research experience and how it may prepare you for this position; (2) a short description of why you would like to be a part of this project and what you hope to gain from this research.

---

Undergraduate Research Assistants / Gordon and López Sepulcre Labs

Term: Year 'round (recurrent)

Project Description
The Gordon Lab and the López Sepulcre Lab collaborate on researching the ecology and evolution of the Trinidadian guppy Poecilia reticulata. They seek motivated students to assist in research that spans a variety of topics including sexual selection, urban evolution, eco-evolutionary feedbacks, and guppy contributions to nutrient cycling. The work involves fish husbandry tasks (feeding, tank cleaning, etc.), as well as assisting laboratory experiments (behavior, ecophysiology, etc.). This position offers opportunities for the development of independent research projects.

---

Undergraduate Research Assistant / Gordon Lab

Term: Summer

Project Description
This Gordon Lab project will investigate the impact of artificial light at night (ALAN) on the development, reproduction, and fitness of Monarch butterflies. This project will include 1) growth chamber experiments and 2) field experiments. The growth chamber experiments will include behavioral trials where we record mating duration, spermatophore transfer, and larval survival. The field experiments will serve as a continuation of the lab work, but with wild caught Eastern Monarchs. The ultimate goal of this research is to work with urban planners to provide protection from ALAN along the Monarch migration route and beyond.

Location
Part of the experiments will take place in the Insectary Building at Cornell and then additional work will take place locally around Ithaca, NY.

Work Schedule
Part-time (approximately 20 hours a week) for 10 weeks, starting early May to late August. The start date is flexible.

Responsibilities and Opportunities

• Will learn how to rear and care for Monarch butterflies in the lab (colony maintenance).
• Will be responsible for growing and maintaining swamp and common milkweed.
• Gain experience conducting behavioral trials.
• Attend weekly lab meetings (optional).
• Potential to start your own independent project.

Required Qualifications/ Skills

• Flexibility in schedule (availability during early mornings and evening).
• Valued skills include organization and attention to detail.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively.

Who should Apply?
No experience necessary. We are looking for someone eager to gain hands on experience with husbandry of Monarchs and behavioral ecology. We value diversity and inclusion and seek applicants all races, genders, and backgrounds.

How to Apply
Contact Hannah Gurholt (hg459@cornell.edu) with: (1) a recent resume including your major, relevant coursework, previous work/research experience and how it may prepare you for this position; (2) a short description of why you would like to be a part of this project and what you hope to gain from this research. Candidates will be interviewed over zoom on a rolling basis until the positions are filled.

---

Undergraduate Research Assistant / Gordon Lab

Term: Fall

Project Description
This Gordon Lab project plans to investigate the evolution of body color across taxa based on life-history traits. The taxa to be studied include birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and insects (moths and butterflies). It would involve work with citizen science photographs and software such as Adobe. Students will learn how to work with large datasets and photos, and learn about color study techniques. The data collected will be part of a bigger project that aims to study how sleep ecology affects the evolution of body coloration in animals. 

Student Responsibilities

• Collect photos from online sources
• Editing photos in Adobe
• Reviewing literature to collect trait data
• Attend weekly lab meetings (optional but encouraged).

Required Skills

• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively.
• Organization and attention to detail.

Work Schedule and  Expectations
This will be research for credits (BIOG 2990/4990) and a weekly time commitment of minimum 8 hours (2 credits) is required. The weekly time commitment can be discussed further on selection. Students will be expected to join the project with the start of the new semester in August and continue till the end of the semester. Students are encouraged to stay with the project till completion to gain a better research experience.

Who Should Apply?
We are looking for highly motivated and hard-working students who like desk-based data collection. No previous experience is required, and training will be provided. We value diversity and inclusion and seek applicants of all races, genders, and backgrounds.

How to Apply
Interested undergraduate students should email Udita Bansal (ub42@cornell.edu) with a little background about themselves and their motivation to join the project. They can also optionally attach a CV. Applications will be open till the 15th of January and candidates will be interviewed over zoom on a rolling basis until the positions are filled.

We value diversity and inclusion and seek applicants of all races, genders, and backgrounds.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Udita.

---

Undergraduate Research Assistant / Xu Lab

Term: Summer

Project Description
The Xu Lab is seeking an undergraduate research technician to assist in a project exploring ecosystem ecology in northeastern forests. This project seeks to utilize terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) to investigate two research questions: 1) the environmental drivers of defoliation in northeastern forests; 2) the environmental drivers of forest 3D structure, particularly the spatial arrangement of leaves. Students will work closely with graduate students on the project, and are also welcome to develop an independent project relating to the overall project and present their work in lab meetings and departmental events.

Location
Field work will occur mainly at sites around Ithaca, with the potential for a short field campaign in the Adirondacks. Data post-processing and analysis will be done in Corson/Mudd Hall.

Work Schedule
Part-time (approximately 20 hours a week) for 10 weeks, starting early May to late August. The exact schedule is still TBD, but open for discussion.

Responsibilities and Opportunities
Specific duties will include: (1) At least four field campaigns involving TLS data collection in the field; (2) post-processing of data using specialized software; (3) extracting leaf area and forest structural information using existing algorithms; (4) geospatial analyses using the Google Earth Engine. Training sessions on TLS sampling and data analysis will be held, so no prior experience is required. Students are welcomed, but not obligated to attend lab meetings.

Required Qualifications/ Skills

• Flexibility in schedule (work will likely start quickly after spring semester ends)
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively
• Experience with R and/or Python (preferred but not required)

How to Apply
Contact Cameron Coles (cjc378@cornell.edu) with: (1) a paragraph describing what you expect to gain from the research; (2) a recent resume including your major, relevant coursework, previous work/research experience and how it may prepare you for this position.

---

Undergraduate Research Assistants / Goodale Lab

Dates: Summer

Project Description
The Goodale Lab is seeking to hire undergraduate research technicians to assist in investigating carbon and nitrogen cycling in northern forests. This position will be primarily split 50/50 between two research projects:

Project 1 will examine how calcium availability affects soil fertility, wood production, and organic matter accumulation in northeast forests, by measuring long-term effects of experimental liming in the Adirondacks, NY.

Project 2 seeks to understand and quantify several mechanisms of nitrogen availability on the amount, form, and stability of soil C, through the manipulation of nitrogen and sulfur deposition in Tompkins County, NY.

Location
Work will primarily take place in Corson-Mudd Hall with possible additional work occurring around Ithaca, NY. Further opportunities could occur out of state, with more discussion and planning.

Work Schedule
Highly flexible; approximately 6-15 hours per week, possibly on all days of the week corresponding with a student's schedule. Hours may be extended to full time depending on field work plans and student performance.

Responsibilities and Opportunities
Work will primarily consist of processing soil/root, leaves, wood samples to quantify belowground carbon allocation and decomposition. Other support includes maintaining the laboratory's space and equipment, cleaning glassware, and organizing archived samples.

Independent work is highly valued, but also questions about the lab and research are encouraged for support. Further possibilities include developing a senior thesis.

Who Should Apply
No experience necessary. Federal work-study support is welcome but not required. Applicants should be interested in forest ecology, environmental science, or related fields. Valued skills include organization, attention to detail, and ability to work both independently and with others. We value diversity and inclusion and seek applicants all races, genders, and backgrounds.

How to Apply
Contact Matthew Hecking (mh2436@cornell.edu) with: (1) a paragraph describing your interest in the position, and (2) a recent resume, including relevant coursework. Applications will be considered upon receipt until positions are filled.

---

Undergraduate Research Assistants / Vitousek Lab

Project Title: Integrative Field Research in Tree Swallows

Dates: Several paid positions are available each year; these research assistantships run from late May through mid-July, and are based in Ithaca, NY.

Position Description
The Vitousek Lab studies how organisms cope with challenges and respond to changing information about their environments. Combining tools and approaches from different fields within biology to test questions like: Why are some individuals more stress resilient than others? How do stressors and social interactions change the phenotype of individuals that experience them? How does this kind of phenotypic plasticity affect populations? Much of the research uses free-living tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) to test these questions. Students learn how to safely catch, band, and sample free-living tree swallows, monitor nests, and record behavior using a variety of remote monitoring devices. For details about research projects and current team members please visit the Vitousek Lab website. No experience necessary!

How to Apply
Applications are accepted annually. Please contact Maren Vitousek (mnv6@cornell.edu) by the end of January for more information and details on how to apply.