17 May 2024
Job Information
- Organisation/Company
La Rochelle Université- Research Field
Biological sciences » Biodiversity
Biological sciences » Other- Researcher Profile
Recognised Researcher (R2)- Country
France- Application Deadline
23 Jun 2024 - 23:00 (Europe/Paris)- Type of Contract
Temporary- Job Status
Full-time- Hours Per Week
35- Offer Starting Date
2 Sep 2024- Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?
Not funded by an EU programme- Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?
Yes
Offer Description
La Rochelle University is recruiting a post-doctoral researcher in behavioural ecology at the center for biological studies of Chizé in France (CEBC) on a fixed-term contract for a duration of 30 months.
Working environment
The primary vocation of the center for biological studies of Chizé (CEBC) is to understand how species adapt - or disappear - facing natural changes, or changes due to human activity. Our study models are vertebrates, reptiles, birds and mammals, both terrestrial and marine. The research carried out at the CEBC, as fundamental as it is, makes a major contribution to tomorrow's environmental solutions and protection measures.
See the laboratory website: https://www.cebc.cnrs.fr/?lang=en
Service description
Based at the Chizé laboratory in western region of France, with a mission to Kerguelen Island (in autumn 2025), the candidate will be involved in placing GPS tags on black-browed albatrosses and in an eco-physiological study that is about to start, involving rapid blood sampling of individuals to study their hormonal stress.
The main objective is to understand whether there are 'profiles' of individuals more or less attracted by fishing boats in an albatross population, what characterises these profiles, and whether they are heritable. Indeed, demographic studies suggest that the strong impact of these interactions on the selective value of the birds (in particular by-catch mortality) could act as a selective force on interaction behaviour (e.g. Barbraud et al 2015 PlosOne), despite the small number of generations involved since the appearance of the boats.
More fundamentally, these analyses are thus part of a reflection on the evolution of 'behavioural syndromes', which seems to go beyond the usual categorisations along the bold-shy axis (or similar axes), to focus on distinct and sequential behavioural parameters (encounter, attraction, residence) studied for themselves and contributing together to the same final consequence in terms of selective value (time spent with boats, implying risks of mortality but also a potential gain in food). Nevertheless, these links with the theory and the fundamental questions may need to be deepened and clarified by better integration with the bibliography (particularly recent) in the field.
Methods and data available
By decomposing the interaction into a series of behavioural decisions (see Collet et al 2017 Ecol & Evol, Collet et al 2017 Behav Ecol; Collet & Weimerskirch 2020 Proc B), it will be possible to explore intra-individual variations and to test the repeatability of each of these decisions and their possible co-variations; as well as their heritability (known kinship links between individuals). These analyses will be based on a considerably larger dataset than the team's previous studies on interaction behaviour: data on the 7 TAAFs boats between 2002 and 2023 (and not just 2010-2013); data on boats outside the TAAFs between 2010 and 2023 (and not just 2019) to be cross-referenced with hundreds of albatross journeys; including more than 100 individuals with multiple journeys; and whose pedigree, age and sex are known.
Missions
- Analyse intra-individual variations in these parameters; test their repeatability and heritability. This will involve making decisions about which co-variables to include or exclude (age, sex of birds, annual ecological indices, etc.), whether to exclude or analyse parts of the dataset separately (depending on fishing fleet, data available, etc.), etc.
- Report on these analyses by writing scientific articles. The number and breakdown of publications will depend on the candidate's results and projects, but it is expected that at least the following results will be submitted for publication: intra-individual variations, repeatability and co-variations of interaction behavioural parameters; and their heritability. This could, for example, constitute two separate articles. Other articles are also conceivable, on other species/comparative analyses (large albatrosses vs. black-browed albatrosses; cape gannets) and/or on the birds' detection or memory capacities, for example, but cannot be considered as contract deliverables.
- Establish correspondences between the albatross tracking dataset and the boat datasets by adapting pre-existing scripts
- Adapt the pre-existing scripts to calculate the various behavioural parameters (detection distances, identification of "encounter events", probability of going to the boat during an encounter, residence time and behaviour; possibly memorising past encounter zones).
- Present these results at at least one conference (e.g. ASAB, SFECA or other behavioural ecology conference).
- (Participate in the co-supervision of Ewen Le Scornec's thesis to integrate analyses of the repeatability of interaction rates into his explorations of variations in interaction rates over time in the population, and/or advise him on the behavioural interpretation of his results. This will be rewarded by inclusion in the list of co-authors of the relevant thesis publications).
- Helping to prepare and participate to the mission to Kerguelen, in particular to specify the protocols for blood sampling and the necessary equipment.
These tasks are not exhaustive, and may change as the project progresses.
Requirements
- Research Field
- Biological sciences » Other
- Education Level
- PhD or equivalent
Skills/Qualifications
The candidate is expected to have a good command of the concepts of animal personality and behavioural syndromes and the associated statistical methods, in order to carry out and describe these analyses without getting lost in their application to multiple scales, and in order to integrate these analyses as well as possible into a wider bibliographical framework.
Knowledge of animal cognition in order to be rigorous in highlighting detection or memorisation abilities will also be greatly appreciated. Publications in the field of personality and/or cognition are therefore expected, particularly if they show a propensity for in-depth theoretical reflection on these subjects. Coding skills to automate the processing of the large volumes of data involved (bird and boat tracks) will be a plus.
Finally, the ideal candidate will also have practical experience of handling birds, in particular taking rapid blood samples for hormonal stress analyses, and will be highly motivated for the field mission, which will involve difficult conditions (isolated environment, rain and cold, colony on rugged slopes requiring certification in climbing techniques).
Knowledge of the ecology of seabirds and/or their interactions with fisheries is a plus but not essential, as these skills are already strongly present at the CEBC laboratory.
- Languages
- FRENCH
- Level
- Excellent
- Languages
- ENGLISH
- Level
- Good
- Research Field
- Biological sciences » BiodiversityBiological sciences » BiologyBiological sciences » Other
- Years of Research Experience
- 1 - 4
Additional Information
Benefits
Location : CEBC laboratory - 405 Route de Prissé la Charrière, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois -FRANCE
Gross salary : from €2,500 gross for full-time work, depending on level of experience and degree of expertise
Type: fixed-term contract
Working time: full-time 30 months
Selection process
Contact for information on the position to be filled
Julien COLLET - Lecturer and Researcher
E Mail : [email protected]
How do I apply?
Your application must include :
- letter of motivation
- detailed curriculum vitae
- copy of highest diploma
This application must be submitted by e mail : [email protected]
Application deadline: 23/06/2024
Start date: 02/09/2024
Work Location(s)
- Number of offers available
- 1
- Company/Institute
- La Rochelle Université - CEBC laboratory
- Country
- France
- City
- Chizé
- Postal Code
- 79360
- Street
- 405 Route de Prissé la Charrière
- Geofield
Where to apply
[email protected]
Contact
- City
La Rochelle- Website
https://www.univ-larochelle.fr/en/- Street
23 avenue Albert Einstein, BP 33060- Postal Code
17031
STATUS: EXPIRED