The Center for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences in the Department of Biological Sciences at Eastern Illinois University invites applications for a postdoctoral research associate. The position will take a lead role on a collaborative project with cooperating agencies from multiple states and other universities investigating invasive carp in the Ohio River basin.
The research goals for the project involve:
- Investigating the sources of recruitment and reproduction of invasive bigheaded carps in the Wabash River.
- Assessing the impact of the invasive bigheaded carps on Wabash River food web dynamics.
- Developing a genetic tool using metabarcoding to rapidly identify larval fish samples to species resolution.
- Identification of the long-term trends in fish community assemblages of the Wabash using data collected via the Long-term Electrofishing program at EIU.
- Preparing and publishing scientific manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals will be a major focus of the chosen candidate.
The Center for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences program has two tenure track faculty, a full-time research associate, between 8-10 master’s students and many undergraduate students. The postdoc will be part of a dynamic team working on a wide range of projects addressing various anthropogenic impacts on fish populations and aquatic communities. There will be opportunities to mentor students and participate in teaching if desired. We are housed in a newly renovated life sciences building and anticipate moving into a state-of-the-art science building during 2026.
