Hi birders,
On behalf of Simon Griffith could you please distribute the following
advertisements for PhD positions to anyone who may be interested, or who may
know of people who may be interested.
Thanks,
Dean Portelli
Two PhD Scholarships in Avian Evolutionary Ecology (Sydney, Australia)
Both projects will be based in Macquarie University's Centre for the
Integrative Study of Animal Behaviour (http://galliform.bhs.mq.edu.au/
~cisab/) and are supported by MQRES Scholarships*.
Project 1. - Maintenance of polymorphism in the Gouldian finch
This project will investigate the persistence of the rare yellow
morph of the endangered Gouldian finch in wild and captive
populations. The general research theme is to understand why the
genetically determined yellow morph naturally occurs at much lower
levels (< 1%) than the red (30%) and black (70%) morphs of this
species. Based on the genetic determination of the morphs we should
expect to find a much higher frequency of the yellow morph in natural
populations. However, previous work has shown that yellow individuals
are behaviourally dominated by the other two morphs and also are
generally avoided as mates. This project will investigate a variety
of physiological and behavioural traits in an attempt to characterise
both positive and negative selection on the yellow morph to
understand its place in this classic balanced polymorphism. Although
the research program into which this project fits is supported by
ongoing ARC Discovery and Linkage grants, the student will have ample
room for individual choice of specific topics and design of
experiments. Applicants should have a background in some of the
following areas: biology, animal behaviour, behavioural ecology,
evolutionary ecology, genetics.
The project is based in the research group of A/Prof Simon Griffith,
to whom enquiries should be directed )
before 31 May 2007. This project will be jointly supervised by Dr
Sarah Pryke (also in CISAB).
Project 2. - Genetic structure of the chestnut-crowned babbler
We seek a student to investigate the genetic structure of the
cooperatively breeding chestnut-crowned babbler: from family groups
through local populations up to the broad-scale species range in
arid, and semi-arid Australia. This research program, focusing on an
avian equivalent of the meerkat, will include field-work, behavioural
observation and a substantial molecular component (PCR-based
microsatellite genotyping) with the main aim of understanding the
breeding system of this species, and the way in which ecology
interacts with dispersal and local adaptation to contribute to the
evolution of cooperative breeding. This project will use an ongoing
study population at the Fowlers Gap Arid Zone Research Station (far-
west NSW) and a number of other wild populations throughout the
range. Although the research program into which this project fits is
supported by an ongoing ARC Discovery grant, the student will have
ample room for individual choice of specific topics and design of
research. Applicants should have a background in some of the
following areas: biology, animal behaviour, behavioural ecology,
evolutionary ecology, genetics.
The project is based in the research group of A/Prof Simon Griffith,
to whom enquiries about the project should be directed
before 31 May 2007. This project will be
jointly supervised by Dr Andrew Russell (University of Sheffield, UK,
http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/aps/contacts/acadstaff/russell.html).
* MQRES scholarships are available year round for Australian and
International students. MQRES scholarships include an APA-equivalent
stipend (currently AU$19,616 p.a. tax exempt), allowances for
relocation and thesis costs, international tuition fees and overseas
health cover for a maximum of 3.5 years tenure. Applicants should
have completed equivalent research qualifications to a four-year
Australian Bachelor degree with First Class Honours, such as a
Bachelor degree plus a Masters degree with a substantial research
component. AU$6,000 p.a. is provided by CISAB to all PhD students to
cover direct research expenses of their project, and several generous
internal schemes are available to fund travel to visit overseas
laboratories and to attend conferences.
_________________________________________________________________
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