Undergraduate Research Participant Position: Summers Lab, Biology Dept., ECU
The Summers lab at East Carolina University is searching for an undergraduate student research participant to train and learn how to carry out research associated with a National Science Foundation (NSF REU) supported project focused on the genetic underpinnings of mimicry and color pattern evolution in a mimetic radiation of poison frogs in Peru (see description below), in the summer of 2020 (May – August). Desirable qualifications for this position include an interest in the ecology and evolutionary biology of tropical amphibians, coursework or experience in evolutionary biology and tropical ecology, and previous work with live animals (especially amphibians). The position will involve assisting graduate students on specific projects, and also learning how to gather data for a project they student take the lead on. This intensive field research training assistantship will be funded by a National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates award, and will provide funds for travel, living expenses, field supplies, and a stipend for three months. Fieldwork will involve long, hard days working under difficult conditions (heat, humidity, insects), and will require careful planning and perseverance. Knowledge of Spanish will be helpful for this work. The successful applicant will receive training in tropical biology and fieldwork in the rainforest, and will receive authorship on presentations and manuscripts to which she/he has made a substantial contribution. The trainee will submit a report and presentation after the research period that will describe how she/he has learned to approach these methods and concepts and how this has shaped his/her knowledge.
Project Description: The evolution of color pattern diversity in the context of mimicry has been a focus of theoretical and empirical attention, yet knowledge of the genetic basis of this diversity remains limited. This research project combines three research groups with complementary skills and realms of expertise to investigate the genetic basis and population genomic processes underlying color pattern divergence in the context of mimicry in the Peruvian mimic poison frog, Ranitomeya imitator: Dr. Kyle Summers (East Carolina University), Dr. Rasmus Nielsen (UC Berkeley) and Dr. Matthew MacManes (University of New Hampshire). The project focuses on four specific aims: 1. Identify key genetic factors involved in color pattern development in R. imitator by investigating differential gene expression across developmental stages and color pattern morphs, in the field and in the laboratory. 2. Identify the causal gene(s) underlying differences in color pattern between morphs using genome-wide marker arrays (exome capture sequences) to screen transition zone samples and enable admixture mapping. 3. Test the association of specific candidate loci with color pattern using pedigree analyses of candidate genes identified from Aims 1 and 2, using a multigenerational pedigree. 4. Test specific hypotheses regarding selection and demographic processes in the transition zones and between mimics and models. Together these complementary, mutually reinforcing approaches will begin to reveal the genetic underpinnings and population genomics of color pattern diversity in this mimetic radiation of poison frogs.
The Department of Biology at ECU is large and multidisciplinary, with strong research groups in evolution, ecology, behavior and genomics: see https://biology.ecu.edu/ for more information. See https://people.ecu.edu/summersk/research-page/ for more information on previous research in the Summers lab. I encourage applications from minorities and under-represented groups of all kinds. Please send a letter detailing your research interests and experience, as well as a current CV (including coursework and grades), and the names and addresses of two references, to Kyle Summers (summersk@ecu.edu) by March 1st, 2020. Please contact me with questions if you would like further information.