Behavioral Ecology of Sailfin and Amazon Mollies

Amazon mollies, Poecilia formosa, are a unisexual (all female) species of molly that are parasitic on the closely related bisexual sailfin molly, P. latipinna. Conflict exists between male sailfin mollies trying to mate with the right species, and the unisexual females trying to appropriate a mating from these males. I have funding for a research assistant to help in study aspects of this system. See http://www.bio.swt.edu/~gabor/gabor.htm for details about my lab and my research interests.

The Department of Biology offers a strong environment in evolutionary ecology as the basis for training in behavioral ecology. Students will benefit from interactions with other faculty interested in evolutionary questions: Jim Ott (Insect-plant interactions and ecological genetics), Mike Forstner (Vertebrate systematics and population genetics), and Chris Nice (Speciation in insects and phylogeography).

Southwest Texas State University is committed to excellence in graduate training. The successful student will be responsible for performing research on specific aspects of the proposed study system.

The stipend is $18,000 / 12 months and includes health insurance (in-state tuition fees apply to all students and cannot be waived). The Research Assistantship is renewable for a second year at the same rate.

GRE (verbal and quantitative) scores of 1000 for MS, and a GPA of 2.75 are minimum requirements. For more information on admissions see http://www.gradschool.swt.edu/catalogadmission.html. Please also see the Department of Biology (http://www.bio.swt.edu/) and Southwest Texas State University (http:// www.swt.edu/) web sites for more information.

To apply for this job please send a letter of interest stating why you are interested in doing this work. Also send a CV/resume of related research, coursework, grades, and any other relevant experience to me via email (preferably) or regular mail. I will respond as soon as I get this information.

Caitlin R. Gabor, Ph. D.
Assistant Professor
Southwest Texas State University
Department of Biology,
Science Building Room 384
San Marcos, TX 78666-4615
Work: (512) 245-3387; Fax: (512) 245-8713
E-mail: gabor@swt.edu

http://www.bio.swt.edu/~gabor/gabor.htm

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