Research Fellowship

Great Hollow Nature Preserve & Ecological Research Center is pleased to announce the opening of a two-year, open-topic fellowship to support a post-doctoral scientist at our preserve in New Fairfield, Connecticut. The Fellow will: (1) design and conduct independent research at Great Hollow and/or other appropriate study sites in the region, (2) assist with other research projects of Great Hollow’s, (3) help coordinate and mentor Great Hollow’s summer interns, and (4) contribute to the general day-to-day operation of Great Hollow as a member of our small staff, including but not limited to occasional assistance with outreach, community events, and land management.

The ideal candidate will be an ecologist whose research is field-based, integrative, and innovative, has a conservation application, and will complement or add to Great Hollow’s active areas of study. Candidates may work on any taxa and in any subdiscipline that is relevant to the biodiversity and ecological communities of the northeastern U.S., although animal ecologists will likely be the most competitive.

The fellowship is intended for early career scientists who have completed their PhD within the past 5 years. PhD candidates who expect to defend during the spring of 2027 and who meet all other qualifications below are also eligible to apply.

Founded in 2016, Great Hollow is a non-profit environmental education and research center located in New Fairfield, Connecticut, a little more than an hour north of New York City. Great Hollow is dedicated to the advancement of biodiversity conservation, applied ecological research, and experiential environmental education in Connecticut and beyond. Our 825-acre preserve is contiguous or nearly contiguous with thousands of acres of additional protected land in Connecticut and neighboring New York State.

The preserve is also near Candlewood Lake, which is the largest lake in Connecticut and presents diverse opportunities for aquatic ecology. The preserve is predominantly second-growth deciduous and mixed forest, with streams, a large wetland, vernal pools, and small patches of shrubland. More than 4 miles of hiking trails weave through the western half of the preserve and are open to the public year-round.

The eastern half of the preserve is closed to the public, but available to staff for research.

Great Hollow conducts conservation-driven studies of biodiversity in Connecticut and beyond to better understand human impacts to the environment and provide science that can help inform management decisions and public policy. Our research spans the fields of animal ecology, ecophysiology, and ecotoxicology as they relate to the effects of invasive species, land-use change, and pollution on wildlife and habitat quality. We take a collaborative approach to research, working closely with partners across academia, government, and other NGOs to approach questions and conservation issues of common interest.

Please browse our website and annual reports for more information on our research.

Great Hollow also operates as a biological field station that is open to external researchers. Facilities at the preserve include seasonal staff housing, offices, a classroom, and a basic wet lab. The lab is modestly equipped with a
-80°C freezer, refrigerator, fume hood, research-grade dissecting scope with digital camera, analytical balance, drying oven, autoclave, Soxhlet fat extraction apparatus, Berlese funnels, hemoglobin and hematocrit meter, water bath, microcentrifuges, hematocrit centrifuge, vortexer, variable pipettes, and basic glassware. Applicants should specify whether the research they propose conducting as the Fellow would require any specialized laboratory equipment or…