PhD Candidate Position in Paleolimnology: Effects of insect forest defoliation on lake-water quality

We are currently recruiting a PhD student to join our team at the Forest Research Institute of the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT). The student will take on a research project that assesses the long-term effects of spruce budworm outbreaks on lakes in the boreal forest of Quebec.

Insect outbreaks are one of the most significant natural disturbances of Canada’s boreal forest, reducing tree growth and causing tree mortality. In Quebec, most forest damage is caused by spruce budworms, with outbreaks occurring every 30 to 40 years and lasting several years, thus strongly impacting the forestry industry. The most recent spruce budworm outbreak in Quebec (2006) has since affected over 13 million hectares of forest. Changes within the forest ecosystem can be tracked using lake sediment cores as lakes are strongly linked to their surrounding landscape. Lake sediments provide a natural record of how forests and lakes have changed over the past hundreds to thousands of years. The effects of forest disturbances by insects on boreal lakes are still poorly understood and this project aims to use lake sediments to study the long-term effects of spruce budworm outbreaks on water quality and carbon cycling.

The student will work under the supervision of Professors Carsten Meyer-Jacob and Mebarek Lamara at UQAT, and in close collaboration with the Canadian Forest Service (Great Lakes Forestry Centre and Atlantic Forestry Centre, Natural Resources Canada). This project involves both field work and lab work, and will use geochemical and sedimentary DNA analyses to track past spruce budworm outbreaks and identify their effects on lake ecosystems.

This is a fully funded 3-year position with an anticipated start date in Fall 2024. Further details on the PhD program at UQAT (Doctorate in Environmental Sciences) are available at https://www.uqat.ca/etudes/irf/doctorat-en-sciences-de-environnement-secteur-forets/.

Start Date: Winter 2025

Financial Support: Scholarship of 24,000$ per year for 3 years

Requirements:

- MSc degree or equivalent in Biology, Earth or Environmental Sciences, or related fields

- Field and lab work experience

- Ability to communicate in written and spoken English

- Ability to work independently and in teams

- Motivated to learn and passionate about environmental change and solving environmental issues

- Previous experience in paleolimnology, aquatic ecology, and/or biogeochemistry are advantageous