The Little Hermit is a lek mating hummingbird of Venezuela and Trinidad known for the peculiar patterns of vocal variation among different regions, between different leks, and even within a lek. Little is known about how and why this spatial pattern of vocal dialects occurs in this species.
The project’s main goal is to test hypotheses about the adaptive significance of geographic variation in vocalizations of the Little Hermit hummingbird. Field research assistants will participate in data collection during an intensive 4 month field season of this long-term study. Assistant duties will include (but are not limited to) nest-searching, behavioral observations, color band reading, netting, radio-tracking, and playback experiments. Days will be long and the work will be physically and mentally demanding, but for those seeking to gain experience in field research you won’t be disappointed. The work week will typically be 6 days long in the buggy, snakey, and humid forests of Trinidad; this work will leave you exhausted at the end of the day!
Assistants will be involved in all aspects of the project, including discussions of the conceptual framework of the project. The upcoming field season will be geared primarily towards 1) obtaining paternity data of lekking males through intensive nest searching, 2) conducting playback experiments to better understand the information content of the songs of males on the lek, and 3) watching interactions between lekking males to better understand the significance of male song clusters.
Location: Brasso Seco village, Northern Range, Trinidad Dates: Early Jan
– early May, 2011. College graduates and undergraduates who can take a leave of absence for the spring semester are particularly encouraged to apply. Students are encouraged to apply for academic credit for their work at their home institution.
SALARY: Free housing and food (Unfortunately, you will have to pay your own airfare to Trinidad).
DEADLINE: Until positions are filled.
QUALIFICATIONS: Those withprevious field experience (especially those who have mist netting experience) and a strong interest in bird behavior are highly preferred. Other important qualifications include 1) willingness to work very long hours in tropical conditions (that means buggy, sweaty, and very wet), 2) commitment to paying attention to detail (e.g. writing legibly) for the entire 4 months of work, 3) ability to get along well with others in a very cramped environment (you will be in close contact with myself and 1 other field assistant for the whole 4 months), 4) ability and willingness to work alone in the field and to work in an area where encounters with poisonous snakes is a very real possibility, 5) willingness to cook (all meals will have to be prepared ourselves). Applicants must have a strong interest in field research as a possible (or definite) career goal (i.e. applying because you’d like to see a tropical forest before going off to medical school is not something I’m looking for).
APPLICATION: Send a cover letter (1 page) detailing your interests and career goals and how you see this internship fitting in with them, a resume or CV (keep it to relevant details), an unofficial transcript (or simple list of courses and grades on a spreadsheet), and the names and contact information (email and phone) of 3 references (ideally with some experience with how you work in a research/field context) to JULIAN KAPOOR (EM: vak9@cornell.edu).
The project’s main goal is to test hypotheses about the adaptive significance of geographic variation in vocalizations of the Little Hermit hummingbird. Field research assistants will participate in data collection during an intensive 4 month field season of this long-term study. Assistant duties will include (but are not limited to) nest-searching, behavioral observations, color band reading, netting, radio-tracking, and playback experiments. Days will be long and the work will be physically and mentally demanding, but for those seeking to gain experience in field research you won’t be disappointed. The work week will typically be 6 days long in the buggy, snakey, and humid forests of Trinidad; this work will leave you exhausted at the end of the day!
Assistants will be involved in all aspects of the project, including discussions of the conceptual framework of the project. The upcoming field season will be geared primarily towards 1) obtaining paternity data of lekking males through intensive nest searching, 2) conducting playback experiments to better understand the information content of the songs of males on the lek, and 3) watching interactions between lekking males to better understand the significance of male song clusters.
Location: Brasso Seco village, Northern Range, Trinidad Dates: Early Jan
– early May, 2011. College graduates and undergraduates who can take a leave of absence for the spring semester are particularly encouraged to apply. Students are encouraged to apply for academic credit for their work at their home institution.
SALARY: Free housing and food (Unfortunately, you will have to pay your own airfare to Trinidad).
DEADLINE: Until positions are filled.
QUALIFICATIONS: Those withprevious field experience (especially those who have mist netting experience) and a strong interest in bird behavior are highly preferred. Other important qualifications include 1) willingness to work very long hours in tropical conditions (that means buggy, sweaty, and very wet), 2) commitment to paying attention to detail (e.g. writing legibly) for the entire 4 months of work, 3) ability to get along well with others in a very cramped environment (you will be in close contact with myself and 1 other field assistant for the whole 4 months), 4) ability and willingness to work alone in the field and to work in an area where encounters with poisonous snakes is a very real possibility, 5) willingness to cook (all meals will have to be prepared ourselves). Applicants must have a strong interest in field research as a possible (or definite) career goal (i.e. applying because you’d like to see a tropical forest before going off to medical school is not something I’m looking for).
APPLICATION: Send a cover letter (1 page) detailing your interests and career goals and how you see this internship fitting in with them, a resume or CV (keep it to relevant details), an unofficial transcript (or simple list of courses and grades on a spreadsheet), and the names and contact information (email and phone) of 3 references (ideally with some experience with how you work in a research/field context) to JULIAN KAPOOR (EM: vak9@cornell.edu).