A four year *PhD Studentship *is available for a highly motivated
postgraduate student to join a project exploring how abiotic and biotic
factors structure host-parasitoid food webs. This collaborative project
utilizes a novel food web model system of wild /Drosophila/ species and
their parasitoids. The student will take part in surveying the focal
food webs along environmental gradients in tropical Australia and Papua
New Guinea using modern DNA metabarcoding methods, establishing the role
of symbiotic bacteria in food webs, and dissecting the factors
structuring the food webs using field and laboratory experiments. There
will also be opportunities to develop the project in a direction of the
student’s own choosing.
The successful applicant will join the Laboratory of Experimental
Ecology [ http://lab.hrcek.net <http://lab.hrcek.net/> ] at the
Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences,
Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic, under the supervision of Dr Jan Hrcek.
The laboratory is part of the Department of Ecology, a dynamic
multinational centre for interaction network research with regular
publications in leading journals [http://www.plantanimalinteractions.com
<http://www.plantanimalinteractions.com/> ]. The student will be
co-supervised by Prof. Owen Lewis (University of Oxford) and will be in
regular contact with the Community Ecology group at Oxford [
https://communityecology.zoo.ox.ac.uk
<https://communityecology.zoo.ox.ac.uk/> ].
The deadline for applications is *August 8th 2016*, with expected start
date of October 1st 2016. The student will receive a salary which
comfortably covers living expenses in the Czech Republic. The salary
will be composed of stipend from the University of South Bohemiaand part
time employment at Biology Centre CAS. The working language is English
and applicants from all countries are eligible.
Required
·A master’s degree (non-negotiable requirement for PhD study in the
Czech Republic)
·A strong educational track record in biological sciences
·Very good written and spoken English
·Interest in community ecology
·Experience with molecular laboratory work
Desirable
·Research experience with molecular ecology, insect ecology or
laboratory experiments
·Experience in ecological statistics or bioinformatics
·Enthusiasm for fieldwork in the tropics
To apply please send one document which includes CV, contact details for
two references, and cover letter stating qualifications, previous work
and motivation to Jan Hrcek [ [email protected]
<mailto:[email protected]>].
