Field Assistants

Field Assistants needed immediately for a community ecology /
invasion biology study in the Samoan Archipleago

I am currently conducting field experiments on the influence of mutualisms between
Morinda citrifolia (Nonu) and Anoplolepis gracilipes (Yellow Crazy Ant-an invasive insect
in Samoa) on (i) the dynamics of the yellow crazy ant invasion of Samoa and (ii) the
response of native plant and arthropod communities to the invader.

There are now positions available for field assistants for this project. I request that
field assistants commit to work on this project for at least one month. However, this is
an ongoing project, so interested applicants can work up to 6 months as a field
assistant. Duties include assisting in the maintenance of plot-level manipulative
experiments (including limited vegetation clearing), conducting surveys of ants, plants,
and nectar excreting arthropods across the Samoan Archipelago, assisting with short-term
behavioral ecology experiments, mapping vegetation dynamics, and collecting and sorting
samples of arthropod communities.

Field assistants are expected to pay for their own travel expenses. However, I will pay
for lodging and meals for all field assistants. Assistants should be comfortable working
outside in the sometimes very hot and humid conditions common to tropical islands.

To apply or for further inquiries, please contact me at savage@rice.edu

Amy M. Savage
PhD Candidate
Rice University
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
6100 Main Street MS-170
Houston, TX 77005