Dear colleagues,
A PhD position is available at the Department of Ecology, SLU, Uppsala. The project is aimed at investigating the interactions between ants and pine weevils. The full announcement can be found below, or via this link:
I would be grateful if you could forward this information to potential candidates.
Cheers,
Niklas Björklund
Department of Ecology in Ultuna
1 PhD student in the research education subject: Biology
Interactions between ants and pine weevils: effects on forest regenerations
Swedish forests are generally managed by clearcutting followed by planting of conifer seedlings. A constant problem is that the seedlings are frequently killed by adult pine weevils feeding on the stem bark. This
damage causes large economic losses for Swedish forestry. Therefore, considerable research efforts are made to find ways to counteract the damage. Part of this research is aiming to obtain better knowledge about factors causing the large variation in damage
levels that are observed between and also within clearcuts. Recent observations show that the presence of ants can reduce the risk of damage to seedlings. This PhD study aims to investigate to what extent ants can prevent feeding by pine weevil on conifer
seedlings and how the presence of ants affects movement patterns and spatial distributions of pine weevil in forest regenerations. The PhD student will investigate behavioral patterns and the effects of these in physical interactions between pine weevil individuals
and different species of ants. How the presence of ants affect feeding and spatial distribution of pine weevils will be studied in field experiments. How the densities of ants varies in time and space and how vegetation and other site factors affect the abundance
of ants will also be studied. The results of the study are expected to help us better understand the variation of damage levels and may therefore underpin future strategies for pine weevil pest management. The PhD study is part of the Swedish Hylobius Research
Program, dealing with pest management of the pine weevil (Hylobius abietis). This research program is funded by the Swedish forestry sector 2010-2014 (see
http://www2.ekol.slu.se/snytbagge). The PhD student will be offered to participate in the graduate school: Ecology – its basics and applications.
Qualifications
Applicants should have a Masters degree (or equivalent) in biology, forest science or similar subjects with emphasis on ecology. Advanced level knowledge in some the subjects behavioral ecology, population ecology,
insect ecology, plant ecology and forest management are qualifying. Also, skills in planning and statistically analyzing experiments as well as experience of ecological field work and of GIS will be of merit. The applicant should have the ability to work both
independently and in a team, and to communicate well in written and spoken English. Driving license is necessary.
Forms for funding or employment
Employment as PhD student 4 years
SLU is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
A person has basic eligibility for third level education if he or she has taken a second level qualification or has completed course requirements of at least 240 higher education credits, including at least 60 higher
education credits at second level.
Those who met the requirements for general eligibility before July 1st, 2007, i.e. had completed a programme of higher education for at least 180 Higher education credits or the equivalent, will continue to do so
until the end of 2015."
Selection among applicants meeting the requirements is made with reference to written application including curriculum vitae, copies of degrees and transcripts of academic records, one copy of the dissertation for
masters or undergraduate degree, a list of at least two references familiar with the applicant's qualifications, certified knowledge of the English language and an interview.
Read more about the PhD education in the Handbook for postgraduate students
Use this APPLICATION FORM
Academic union representatives
SACO Lars Eriksson +46 (0)18 673 137
SEKO Peter Syrjänen +46 (0)18 67 10 57
ST Monica Östman +46 (0)18 671 536
PhD-student commissioner
Applications, marked with ref no 251-346/10, must have arrived at the Registrar of SLU, P.O. Box 7070, S- 750 07 Uppsala or
registrator@slu.se no later than 2010-03-01
¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤ø,
Niklas Björklund, Ph.D.
Dept of Ecology
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
P.O. Box 7044, S-750 07 Uppsala, SWEDEN Delivery address: Ullsväg 16
E-mail: Niklas.Bjorklund@ekol.slu.se
Phone: +46 18 672879
Cell phone: +46 70 5082879