KBS is pleased to announce a undergraduate program that features research internships that are part-time (10-15 hrs/week). This allows you to take a course at KBS during the summer and get some hands-on research experience.

The Research Apprenticeship program provides a $1500 stipend and at least half of the costs of tuition and room and board at the Station.

The Research Apprenticeship program is 5-10 weeks long, depending on the course(s) taken and the research project.  The earliest start date is May 7, the latest end date is August 3.

2013 projects:

The Research Apprenticeship Program is limited to students taking a course in residence at KBS.

All of these opportunities have the potential for an independent project, depending on the skill level of the student selected.

Download a Research Apprenticeship Flyer Page 1 Page 2

We are no longer accepting applications for 2013

Projects for 2013

Invasive species can negatively impact communities they invade by outcompeting native species and changing ecosystem processes. For this reason, it is important to understand how the relationships between the invader and native community influence the invasion process. This research addresses how release from natural enemies (such as herbivores and disease) may be a major determinant of invasive ability. The URA working with Liz will collect data from a common garden experiment looking at the effects of natural enemies on the performance of native, exotic non-invasive, and invasive plant species.

The student will have the opportunity to learn about common invasive species in Michigan and the key mechanisms behind invasion. There will be a combination of field and greenhouse work, and it is necessary that the student enjoys working outdoors in a variety of conditions and does not mind hiking far distances to collect samples.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, Ecology lab, or Plant Systematics

Biodiversity has been argued to be important in sustaining ecosystems that provide services which humans depend on. This relationship has been explored in both natural and experimental systems. Restoration of native grasslands may provide opportunities to manipulate the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. The URA student will assist in a project examining the link between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in 30 grassland restoration sites throughout southern Michigan. This research involves a mix of field (collecting plant/soil samples, planting seeds/plants, collecting data on plant traits) and lab work (data entry, weighing/sorting samples, species identification).

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, Ecology lab, or Plant Systematics

One of the great paradoxes in plant ecology is that fertilization increases plant growth and biomass but decreases plant diversity.  A better understanding of the mechanisms behind these declines will improve scientists’ understanding of plant competition and help to manage worldwide declines in plant diversity.  We seek a student to assist with a field experiment that builds upon our past research examining the role of plant clonality and height on competition under fertilization.  The student will assist with experimental setup and collection of plant diversity, soil nutrient, and light level data and will have the opportunity for independent research.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, Ecology lab, or Plant Systematics

My research focuses on how animals alter their behavior when around relatives.  In particular, I am interested in how they minimize competition with one another. I work with tadpoles, asking what factors in the environment influence the balance between competition and cooperation. The URA will assist with various aspects of the project, including collecting adult toads and tadpoles, sampling local tadpole populations, and helping with experiments to test whether species differ in how much they associate with relatives (kin). This project will involve both lab and field components.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology and/or Ecology lab

Male frogs and toads call to attract females, but calling can be very costly; it requires a lot of energy and it increases the risk of being found by a predator. For example, a calling frog may be eaten while trying to attract mates. I use field recordings of the calling behavior of gray treefrogs and American toads to determine if males that are unlikely to mate again (old, poor condition, etc.) call more than young, healthy individuals who could survive to reproduce in the future.  The URA student for this project will assist in making recordings of calling behavior in the field, help capture, measure, and tag frogs and toads.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology and/or Ecology lab

Tomomi is interested in basic ecological and evolutionary questions such as what limits species abundance and distribution and how organisms adapt to local environments.  She addresses these questions using a classic mutualism interaction between plants and nitrogen-fixing bacteria, rhizobia.  This summer, she will be conducting a combination of field and greenhouse experiments to study whether mutualists facilitate plant adaptation to soil moisture.  The URA student will be involved in setting up a large scale experiment and collecting plant data in forests in southwest Michigan.  The apprentice will also gain experience in basic microbial techniques and possible molecular work including DNA extraction and PCR.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, Ecology lab, or Plant Systematics

Behavioral variation may be maintained through a shy-bold tradeoff in juvenile bluegill sunfish.  Bold individuals may grow faster due to increased foraging in risky habitats, but may experience higher predation than shy individuals.  We will be testing for differences in habitat use, movement, and foraging behavior based on personality.  We will stock individually marked bluegill that have been assayed for boldness in the lab into an experimental pond with predators.  Artificial refuge stations with antenna will read transponder codes as bluegill pass through the stations.  The URA student will assist with behavioral assays, constructing transponder stations, and will learn common fisheries techniques.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, and/or Ecology lab

Aggression is typically considered a male trait, however female aggression is actually fairly common. Working with house wrens, I explore the patterns of male and female aggression as well as the ecological and physiological mechanisms that may underlie these patterns. The URA student will measure adult behavior, eggs and nestling traits, and will learn techniques for capturing, banding, and measuring adult house wrens. While the majority of the work will be field based, a URA may help with processing blood samples in preparation for testosterone measurements in the lab. Applicants MUST have a personal vehicle.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, and/or Ecology lab

Understanding the mechanisms underlying mating system differentiation has been a major theme in plant evolutionary biology.  Species can differ vastly in the degree of outcrossing (cross-fertilization) with some species being exclusively outcrossing and others highly self-fertilized.  The URA student will assist in a project aimed at identifying the traits controlling the level of self-fertilization in two grass species that differ in outcrossing rates.  This work will involve greenhouse and lab studies, floral observation, trait measurement, microscopy, data entry and analysis.  A background or interest in evolution and basic plant biology would be useful, but not required.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology, Ecology lab, or Plant Systematics

Small mammals are an important prey resource for many mammalian and avian species of conservation concern and help disperse seeds from a number of plant species. Consequently, through impacts on small mammal movements and distribution, the composition and configuration of managed and unmanaged habitat can have consequences on ecosystem health. Ecosystem health can also have appreciable impacts on agricultural production. I use genetic data from live-trapped animals and landcover data to quantify the impact of landscape features on movement and gene flow of small mammals at KBS. The URA student for this project will assist in setting traps, collecting animals, ear-tagging and taking tissue samples.

Suggested course enrollment: Ecology/Ecology Lab