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We are recruiting a Master of Science student to begin in Fall 2026 to investigate the sexual biology of a detrimental and pervasive invasive species within the Southwestern U.S.; the Green Sunfish Lepomis cyanellus. Green Sunfish is one of the fastest expanding invaders in the Southwest and are among the most invasive fish species due to their negative impacts on native fish communities. Management of invasive Green Sunfish populations requires highly intensive efforts and traditional removal techniques are seldomly effective. Therefore, alternative management strategies are necessary, such as skewing invasive population sex ratios towards all males through YY fish releases. This project will assess the feasibility of producing YY Green Sunfish by:

1. Investigating Green Sunfish genomes to uncover the sex determination system of this species and develop effective genetic sex ID markers.
2. Examining the effects of various environmental factors on the sex ratios of laboratory-reared Green Sunfish cohorts.

Position Duties

This position entails field work (collecting broodstock and DNA from invasive populations), hatchery management (conducting heat and rearing density experiments), and lab work (DNA extractions, bioinformatic analyses, and sex ID marker development). The student will author manuscripts and present at conferences to disseminate findings. The student will develop highly applicable skills for future careers in fisheries, genetics, aquaculture, and natural resource management, and will obtain mentoring experience by supervising undergraduate research technicians. The partners and sponsors for this project are an excellent team of scientists from federal and state agencies. The selected student will be advised by Dr. Chad Teal (U.S. Geological Survey, Utah State University) in the Technical and Experimental Aquatics Lab. In addition to these research duties, the student will need to successfully complete the required coursework, author and defend a thesis, and graduate with their M.S. within 2.5 years of starting.

Location

The successful applicant will be based out of the Department of Wildland Resources at Utah State University in Logan, UT. For additional information describing the department, faculty, and programs see http://www.qcnr.usu.edu/wats/. Chad Teal’s faculty page can be found at https://qcnr.usu.edu/directory/wats/faculty/teal-chad.

Salary and Benefits: Starting annual stipend of $27,000; plus tuition, fees, and health insurance will be covered.

Application Deadline: March 11, 2026.

Position Start Date: August 24, 2026.

How to Apply: Please email a cover letter, resume or CV, a writing sample, unofficial copies of transcripts, and three professional/academic letters of recommendation to Dr. Chad Teal, email: chad.teal@usu.edu.