Job vacancies

1) PhD 'GENETIC BASIS OF COOPERATION': The aim of this PhD-project is to investigate the genetic basis of cooperative behaviour in highly social African cichlids. These fish have turned into a model species for studies of social evolution based on detailed information about their ecology and behaviour, excellent possibilities for behavioural and physiological experiments and recent sequencing of their full genome. We shall pursue a dual approach: (1) a quantitative genetics study employing a large-scale breeding experiment and (2) an ecological genomics approach using molecular biology tools. The project will involve intensive behavioural observations, quantitative genetics modeling and lab work for brain gene expression analyses. Eligible candidates will have a master’s degree (or Diplom) in Biology and research experience in animal behaviour, a genuine understanding of evolutionary theory and a strong commitment to basic science. Practical skills in molecular and/or quantitative genetics techniques and in empirical work with fish are beneficial, but not a precondition. The project will be mostly based in Bern, but will involve collaboration with two co-supervisors, Nadia Aubin-Horth (University Laval, Canada) and Mathias Kölliker (University of Basel, Switzerland). The position is part of the Doctoral Research Program ("ProDoc") funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation SNF on “Proximate and ultimate causes of cooperation” and will connect up to 30 PhD students working on animal cooperation by a research network. Supervisor of this project: Barbara Taborsky.

2) PhD 'ALTERNATIVE REPRODUCTIVE TACTICS': The aim of this PhD-project is to study the adaptive responses to mating competition of conspecifics pursuing alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs) that are either fixed for life or dependent on condition. Evolutionary theory predicts that negative frequency dependence will select for tactic frequencies generating equal lifetime fitnesses when ARTs reflect genetic morphs. In contrast, when ARTs are purely conditional they may yield different fitness pay-offs. African cichlids showing both types of ARTs will serve as experimental model for this study. It will involve competitive in vitro fertilization experiments, behavioural and environmental manipulations, and – depending on focus – field work on Lake Tanganyika and/or research on physiological control mechanisms. Eligible candidates will have a master’s degree (or Diplom) in Biology and research experience in animal behaviour, a genuine understanding of evolutionary theory and a strong commitment to basic science. Practical skills in behavioural observation, multivariate statistics, physiological techniques, empirical work with fish and scientific publication (e.g. of the master’s thesis) will be helpful, but are not a precondition. Supervisor of this project: Michael Taborsky.

Both positions are for three years and should preferably start in early 2012.
The successful candidates will join a bustling research environment consisting of ca. 15 PhD-students and advanced research staff, five technicians and a varying number of master’s students and guest scientists. Besides this Behavioural Ecology group, the Institute of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Bern comprises research groups in Aquatic Ecology (Ole Seehausen), Community Ecology (Wolfgang Nentwig), Conservation Biology (Raphael Arlettaz), Evolutionary Ecology (Heinz Richner) and Population Genetics (Laurent Excoffier). Salaries will follow the schemes of the national funding organization of Switzerland.

Closing date: Open until filled, but all application materials, including CV, a summary of research experience, copies of any published or in-press papers, and two letters of recommendation should be received by 22 December 2011 to ensure full consideration. Candidates should indicate in a cover letter for which position they apply and when they could take it up. Please send all application material to the secretary’s office, c/o Marlis Gerteis, Dept. Behavioural Ecology, University of Bern, Wohlenstrasse 50A, CH- 3032 Bern, Switzerland; or as e-mail attachments to marlis.gerteis@iee.unibe.ch. Please consult our webpage for information on our research: http://behav.zoology.unibe.ch/ For inquiries please contact barbara.taborsky@iee.unibe.ch (position 1) or michael.taborsky@iee.unibe.ch (position 2).

We offer a PhD Position (1.0 FTE) to undertake research on personality and social networks in great tits within the newly established Behavioural Ecology chair group at the Animal Science Department of Wageningen University, the Netherlands (vacancy number ASG-DW-ETH-0001; the application deadline is 15.12.2011). This position is available within the framework of NWO funded project and will be conducted in close cooperation with the Animal Ecology Department of the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW).

Project details
The aim of the project is to unravel the effects of personality on connectivity and its behavioural and fitness consequences in a social network. Within this project we will measure spatial movements of birds using modern automated tracking techniques in order to determine social network characteristics and their fitness consequences, complemented by playback experiments as short term challenges to a network and by experimental testing of the fitness effects of long-term changes in a network. We will track movements and encounters of a large number of personality-typed great tits (Parus major) during the breeding season. All data collection and experiments will be conducted using a well described colour-ringed population of personality-typed great tits at Westerheide, near Arnhem, the Netherlands. The project is embedded in larger projects on the causes and consequences of animal personality, as well as in broader cooperative projects on movement ecology and wildlife animal tracking.

We ask
- Candidates must have an MSc or equivalent degree in a behavioural ecology or related fields (e.g. Animal Behaviour, Animal Ecology), be enthusiastic about field work, have strong experimental and analytical skills, have good organizational and (written and spoken) communication skills, and a proven ability to collaborate with others, willingness to conduct to organize and extensive ornithological field work, willingness to travel internationally, to attend conferences and visit other institutes, a driver licence and a licence to carry out experiments with vertebrates (i.e. article 9 of the WoD) is a plus

We offer
Employment basis: temporary for specified period; duration of the contract: 1.5 + 2.5 years, maximum hours per week: 38. Additional conditions of employment: To begin with, a PhD appointment for a period of 18 months. Continuation of the appointment with another 30 months will be based on performance evaluation. Gross salary per month € 2042 in the first year rising to € 2612 per month in the fourth year, based on a full time appointment. Participation in the training program of the Graduate School ‘Production Ecology & Resource conservation, see www.pe-rc.nl. An excellent opportunity to develop an international scientific network.

The organization
The successful candidate will join the stimulating and international research environment of Wageningen University. The work will be conducted under supervision of Prof. dr Marc Naguib and in close cooperation with the Department of Animal Ecology of the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW).
For further information, please contact Marc Naguib (marc.naguib@wur.nl; +31 (0)317 483856).
Links: http://www.wur.nl/uk; http://www.zod.wur.nl/UK; http://www.nioo.knaw.nl/en/node/1061
The application deadline is 15.12.2011

Application
You can apply until 15 December 2011. Interviews will take place in early January Go to the website below for more detailed information and to apply for the position http://www.wur.nl/UK/work/Vacancies+New
To access the advertisement use the link above and enter the vacancy number ASG-DW-ETH-0001 into the "vacancy field". Then follow the further links. Contact Marc Naguib at marc.naguib@wur.nl for or any questions regarding the position or the application procedure.

The newly established chair group in Behavioural Ecology at Wageningen University offers a position as Assistant Professor in the field of Behavioural Ecology (vacancy number ASG-DW-ADP-0001). The candidate will be responsible for the organisation, implementation and coordination of new research activities in this field, as well as building up a leading international position. Your research should focus on vertebrate behavioural ecology. You will be involved in teaching at undergraduate and graduate level, supervise PhD and Masters students and you will be expected to obtain external research funding and to publish in international (refereed) journals. We offer a stimulating and friendly working environment where you are expected to contribute to increasing our understanding of animal populations. Training and coaching is provided to accomplish all this.

As Assistant Professor you are an ambitious and enthusiastic scientist and a team player, devoted to research and education in the field of behavioural ecology. Preference will be given to candidates with experimental approaches using birds in the natural habitat as model systems but applications form a broader field will be considered.

The Behavioural Ecology chair group of the Animal Science Department Wageningen University is a newly established enthusiastic and ambitious group which combines expertise in animal behaviour, animal welfare and behavioural ecology. The group will be formally established on 1st December 2011. The research of the group will focus on vertebrates ranging from farm animals to animals in their natural habitat. The chair group in Behavioural Ecology will have a focus on social behaviour using birds as a model species covering topics including social networks, communication, foraging and cognition but applications from also a broader range of topics will be considered. We encourage applications from individuals with a broad range of interests, but will give priority to candidates with research interests and experience in ecological and evolutionary approaches to study behaviour in the natural habitat.

Wageningen University offers you as talented scientist a challenging new career trajectory called Tenure Track. We have the ambition to attract top scientific talent and to stimulate their development. From the position of Assistant Professor you can grow into the position of a Professor holding a personal chair. We are looking for high potentials who can excel in education and research. We offer you a temporary contract for 38 hours per week, which can lead to a permanent employment contract. A part-time position of 0.8 Fte is negotiable. The monthly salary depends on your work experience and expertise. Gross salary from € 3195 to max. € 4374 as Assistant Professor and based on full time employment. The career path consists of a number of successive career steps, from Assistant Professor, to Associate Professor to Professor holding a Personal Chair. Excellent performance and seniority can be rewarded with an appointment as Associate Professor.

Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from:
The chair of the Behavioural Ecology group, Prof. dr. Marc Naguib,
Telephone number: 0031 (0)317- -473442; after 1st December 0031-(0)317 483860
E-mail address: m.naguib@nioo.knaw.nl

Application
You can apply till 15 December 2011. Interviews will take place in early January.
Go to the website below for more detailed information and to apply for the position http://www.wur.nl/UK/work/Vacancies+New
To access the advertisement use the link above and enter the vacancy number ASG-DW-ADP-0001 into the "vacancy field". Then follow the further links. Contact Marc Naguib at m.naguib@nioo.knaw.nl for or any questions regarding the position or the application procedure.

posted on 18 November 2011

The IMPRS is based in southern Germany and is jointly organized by the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen and Radolfzell and the University of Konstanz. Outstanding students of all nationalities with a deep commitment to basic research in Organismal Biology are invited to apply.

More than 25 internationally recognized research groups actively participate in the PhD program and offer challenging, cutting-edge PhD projects in the fields of Behavioral Biology, Ecology, Evolution, Physiology, and Neurobiology. For a list of all PhD projects visit www.orn.mpg.de/IMPRS.

All students accepted to the program will be supported by stipends or contracts. The program offers dedicated teaching programs, high quality research experience, and outstanding research facilities in an inspiring research and living environment. All courses are taught in English. Each PhD candidate receives individual supervision and mentoring and is guided in her/his research work by a PhD advisory committee.

Deadline for the application is January 15, 2012. Interviews with the applicants are scheduled for mid-March. Candidates accepted into the program may start latest October 2012.
The Max Planck Society and the University of Konstanz are equal opportunity employers. Applications from women and historically under-represented groups are particularly welcome.

Qualification Applicants should hold an MSc or equivalent degree in biology or a related discipline at the point of enrollment.
Queries should be mailed to the program office: IMPRS@uni-konstanz.de

Application For the application process visit www.orn.mpg.de/IMPRS

download as pdf

posted on 16 November 2011

more information

posted on 26 September 2011

In the frame of an Austrian Science Foundation-funded PhD college (Cognition and Communication), there is still a PhD position available:
Kurt Kotrschal (main supervisor): The Social Components and Physiology of Cooperative Hunting in Grey Wolves and Dogs.
The successful applicant would be embedded in a high-profile University of Vienna Behavioural Biology and Cognition Biology group and would work at a brand new and unique research facility (www.wolfscience.at).

Application deadline is Sept. 30, for more info, please see pdf.

posted on 13 September 2011

We invite applications for an Assistant Professor (Akademischer Rat / A 13) position in the newly established evolutionary biology group in the Institute of Zoology at Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany. We are seeking a highly motivated young researcher with a strong background in evolutionary biology or behavioral ecology to establish a junior research group within Prof. Susanne Foitzik's research team. Candidates must hold a Ph.D. and postdoctoral experience. The successful candidate should address evolutionary or behavioral questions in social insects or other arthropods.

Our research focuses on behavioral and chemical ecology (http://www.bio.uni-mainz.de/zoo/evobio/) and we are interested in collaborative projects. Excellent research conditions are available at the newly renovated and well-equipped genetic and chemical laboratories in Mainz. Furthermore, new climate chambers are available for animal maintenance.
For further information, please contact foitzik@uni-mainz.de.

The successful candidate should have an excellent publication record. Experience with grant acquisition and teaching is advantageous. The candidate should set-up an independent research lab and is encouraged to apply for grants in Germany or abroad (e.g., DFG, EU). The position comes with a teaching requirement of 4h per week during the semester. Some basic zoology classes have to be taught in German. Consequently, a willingness to learn the German language is required. The candidate has the option to acquire a “Habilitation”. The working language of the lab is English.The Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz is interested in increasing the number of women in science. Applications from female scientists are strongly encouraged. Similarly, qualified candidates with disabilities will be preferred.

The University of Mainz hosts many excellent scientific institutions
(http://www.uni-mainz.de/eng/).
Mainz is a historic city located on the Rhine River with many students and a rich social and cultural life
(http://www.mainz.de/WGAPublisher/online/html/default/hpkr-5nkek8.en.html).

Interested candidates should send an application (as a single e-mail attachment) containing a CV, a list of publications (including reprints of the three most important publications), research and teaching statements, and contact information for two potential referees to:

Prof. Dr. Susanne Foitzik
Evolutionary Biology
Institute of Zoology
Johannes-v.- Müller-Weg 6
D - 55099 Mainz
+49 6131 894 8118
Germany
foitzik@uni-mainz.de

Closing date for application is September 30th, 2011
Starting date for the position is January 1st 2012, but is negotiable

posted on 02 September 2011