Submitted by Albert Ruhi Vidal on
The Strawberry Creek Restoration Project started 31 years ago, and is now a success story that has significantly improved the water and habitat quality of this urban stream. In this project we will be monitoring how aquatic invertebrate communities respond to habitat restoration efforts, focusing on a newly-restored stream section by the Eucalyptus Grove. There, a failing check dam was replaced by a pool that currently provides habitat to native fish. The new data will be combined with long‑term biomonitoring data originated from previous efforts. This will allow understanding how invertebrate communities vary over space (different sections of the stream) and time (pre vs. post-restoration), contributing to a better understanding of restoration outcomes in urban stream ecosystems.
This position is for an assistant to help with field and lab work. The student will visit Strawberry Creek to collect aquatic invertebrates, will sort samples in the lab, and will identify aquatic invertebrates using dichotomous keys. The student will learn to identify aquatic invertebrates (insects and other groups) to family level using a dissecting scope. There will be opportunities to analyze long-term biomonitoring data and assess Strawberry Creek’s restoration trajectory.
No prior experience is required, but skills or coursework in aquatic ecology, entomology, or field research techniques are advantageous and should be mentioned in the application