4 year PhD on Butterfly Evolutionary Ecology (deadline May 19 2023).
The Department of Zoology at Stockholm University invites applications for a 4-year PhD position based in the group of Professor Rhonda Snook. Snook's lab studies the evolutionary ecology of reproduction and underlying genetics of adaptation and plasticity. This project is focused on the ecological and evolutionary consequences of fertility loss due to climate warming on natural populations of several European butterfly species. Negative effects of warming on reproductive processes are well-known but incorporating these effects into models forecasting responses to climate change are relatively rare. Here the student will quantify fitness effects of increasing heat using multiple pairs of butterfly species adapted to different environments, and determine evolutionary potential via local adaptation among populations of these species. Development and application of field-based assays for heat-induced sterility, based in Spain with collaborator Constanti Stefanescu, will be expected, with both lab- and field-based results combined with citizen science monitoring data and climate data used to improve ecological models forecasting future climate change responses. This work compliments and expands ongoing work in the Snook lab using Drosophila. The research for this project will be composed of both laboratory thermal manipulation experiments, measurements of behavioural and physiological traits, and field work to sample replicated populations (across Sweden and Spain), along with analyses considering citizen science population monitoring data and long term climate data. There is some scope for the student to develop additional experiments that complement the proposed research.
Selection among eligible candidates will be based on the candidate's experience in experimental and/or field work using butterflies and analytical skills. Having a valid driver's license is also preferred. The working language of the lab is English. Start date is flexible but ideally someone who could be in place by August. However, the priority is for the strongest candidate so even if you cannot start then, consider applying if you met the other requirements. You must have a valid MSc or equivalent before starting the PhD position. The application will require contact details for 2-3 references along with a 2 page maximum cover letter detailing your previous research and specific interest in this project. It is strongly recommended that you read relevant literature around the project goals and motivate your cover letter accordingly.
For more information, please contact Rhonda Snook (rhonda.snook@zoologi.su.semailto:rhonda.snook@zoologi.su.se)
To apply, use this URL https://www.su.se/english/about-the-university/work-at-su/available-jobs/phd...
Rhonda R Snook Professor Ecology Division Department of Zoology Stockholm University, Sweden