Seeking: Undergraduate(s)

Opportunity Type: Paid

Time Commitment: Fulltime

Application Deadline: May 5, 2025

Description: One of the projects in my lab involves the spatial ecology of migrating caribou in Canada and Alaska. We use ‘movement track data’ from GPS-collared animals to understand how the animals migrate and the challenges they face enroute.

For this specific project, our goal is to: Identify spatial hotspots of caribou water-crossing activity and explore both geographic and temporal patterns. The work involves GIS computational platforms, spatial analysis, and statistical analysis, so experience with those topics is required.

Steps:

  • Use kernel density estimation (KDE) to map lake areas of high crossing frequency based on GPS data.
  • Analyze whether these hotspots are consistently located near specific lake features (e.g., islands in the lake, lake widths).
  • Examine temporal variation in hotspot distribution: 1) Compare across years to evaluate interannual changes; 2) Compare fall vs. spring migration patterns

This is a paid opportunity, involving grant award funds from the US National Science Foundation. The opportunity is for 20 – 40 hours per week, for ~8 weeks over summer 2025.