Undergraduate Student Worker Needed - Freshwater Mussel Project
EAST ALTON – The Illinois RiverWatch program is in search of an intern from Aug. 18 to Nov.11, 2022, to support the Biodiversity of Freshwater Mussels project. The intern will work with the National Great Rivers Research and Education (NGRREC sm) staff and citizen scientists during a weekend field trip to help capture, weigh, measure, and release freshwater mussels. During this time, tissue samples will be taken from select mussel species. “This is a great opportunity for an undergraduate student to participate in a program that combines conservation of threatened species with genetic analysis using world-class technology,” said Danelle Haake, RiverWatch director, and stream ecologist. The intern will then work with staff at the Missouri Botanical Garden (MBG) to process the tissue samples. The resulting data will be analyzed to understand patterns of genetic diversity, including the potential for declines in genetic diversity due to inbreeding, genetic bottlenecks,