Salmonid Ecology Scholarship launched in late Brian Weatherhead’s name

A scholarship for a PhD student undertaking research into the ecology, conservation and management of trout and trout fisheries has been set up in the name of the late Brian Weatherhead.

The Weatherhead Salmonid Ecology Scholarship is available as a result of funding from income that is generated by the Weatherhead Bequest Fund, as well as partnership funding from Fish & Game New Zealand. The successful applicant will be supplied a tax-free stipend of NZ$40,000, for each of the three years of the scholarship.

Weatherhead, who died two years ago, was an avid fly fisherman. He and his wife emigrated to New Zealand at retirement, with trout fishing a major incentive for settling in the Tasman region. Weatherhead knew about Cawthron’s trout research through various sources and met with Cawthron scientists during his lifetime.

The scholarship project will be supervised jointly by Dr Robin Holmes (Cawthron Institute), and a suitably qualified academic from a New Zealand tertiary institution.

Holmes, a freshwater ecologist, said they were looking for a motivated PhD student with a desire to work in applied science. Any field work for the project will be based in New Zealand.

“There will be scope for the student to develop their own research interests provided they align with the overall aims of the Scholarship. For example, a student may wish to study the effects of climate change on New Zealand salmonid fisheries and potential mitigation or adaption options for management.”

“Other interesting areas of research could be the effects of invasive species on trout fisheries and aquatic ecology, or river and riparian management methods that promote trout fishery values and ecosystem health.”

The student will join a postgraduate research group within a department at their chosen tertiary institution and will also have access to the resources and salmonid expertise available at the Cawthron Institute in Nelson as well as Fish & Game New Zealand.

Applications for the Weatherhead Salmonid Ecology Scholarship are now open and will close on 16 October 2022. More information is available here.