The Ecohydrology Lab at K-State is hiring two graduate students (MS or PhD) in either the spring (Jan) 2027 or fall (Aug) 2027. Research in the Ecohydrology Lab at K-State focuses on interactions between ecological and hydrological processes in grasslands, savannas, and shrublands. We combine approaches from plant ecophysiology, ecology, hydrology, and soil science to understand how vegetation shapes water movement and critical zone function under changing climate and land-use conditions. K-State is located in Manhattan, KS in the Flint Hills ecoregion of the Great Plains.
Research projects can be tailored to student interests, but should be relevant to at least one of the following themes:
- Subsurface impacts of land-use / land-cover change – How do woody encroachment, agriculture, and land management strategies alter the subsurface (root distributions, soil structure, etc.) in ways that influence water fluxes in grasslands? What are the consequences for local water yield?
- Plant water-use strategies and coexistence in water-limited ecosystems – How do differences in rooting and water-use strategies influence competition, coexistence, and ecosystem resilience during drought and other climate extremes?
- Drivers and consequences of preferential flow – How do root systems and rainfall characteristics (intensity, duration, etc.) interact to determine preferential flow occurrence and its ecological consequences (nutrient / pollutant / solute transport, microbial activity, carbon cycling, etc.)?
Interested students should contact Rachel Keen at rkeen@ksu.edu
Check out our lab website for more details about the position, the application process, and ongoing research projects in our lab:
https://rleasey.wixsite.com/keenecohydrology/join-the-lab
