Ecological time series are critical to understanding and managing ocean ecosystem response to climate variability, climate change, and other stressors. NOAA has maintained an extensive network of ecological observations through ichthyoplankton (larval fish) survey programs providing fishery-independent time series data from southern California to Alaska. These data provide a robust framework for evaluating west coast-wide, cross-ecosystem shifts in fish populations that that may have occurred in response to climate variability and/or anthropogenic activities.

Ichthyoplankton data sets have been assembled from the Bering Sea (20 years), Gulf of Alaska (30+ years), and the northern and southern California Current (Oregon 20 years, California 63 years) systems. Project tasks will be to (1) assess coast-wide shared and unshared patterns of change in key species and assemblages and evaluate potential relationships with environmental drivers; and (2) evaluate which populations or assemblages may serve as indicators of ecosystem status and harbingers of climate change.

We seek a quantitative fisheries ecologist with prior experience working with early life history fish data, large data sets (physical and biological), and an interest in development of indicators and metrics that can be used in the context of management. The incumbent will join a multidisciplinary team of physical oceanographers, fisheries ecologists, stock assessment scientists, and fisheries statisticians to address the objectives outlined above. Candidates with robust statistical modeling expertise that may include traditional multivariate analyses (PCA, hierarchical clustering, ordination), GAM, dynamic factor analysis, and/or Random Forest and Gradient Forest Models are preferred.

 

References

Siddon EC, Duffy-Anderson JT, Mueter F: Community-level response of ichthyoplankton to environmental variability in the eastern Bering Sea. Marine Ecology Progress Series 426: 225-239, 2011

McClatchie S, et al: Long time series in US fisheries oceanography. Oceanography 27: 48-67, 2014

Laurel BJ, Cote D, Gregory RS, Rogers LA, Knutsen H, Olsen EM: Recruitment signals in juvenile cod surveys depend on thermal growth conditions. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 74: 511-523, 2017

 

key words

Climate change; Fisheries; Larval fish; Ecosystem indicators; Time series; Statistical modeling; Recruitment;

Citizenship:  Open to U.S. citizens, permanent residents and non-U.S. citizens

Level:  Open to Postdoctoral and Senior applicants