Overview

Workplace: Institute of Entomology
Department: Department of Ecology
Employment relationship: Employment contract
Job type: Researcher
Researcher profile: R1
Duration: Fixed-term
Job status: Full-time
Job starting date: 1. 4. 2025
Application deadline: 31. 12. 2024

JOB DESCRIPTION:

PhD Studentships is available to work on the project Impacts of drought on the communities of leaf-litter arthropods and their food-web interactions

Highly motivated candidates are sought to join a project funded by the Czech Science Foundation that aims to explore the effects of drought on the leaf-litter communities of arthropods in subtropical and tropical forest ecosystems, using a combination of cutting-edge field and laboratory methods. The students will conduct field surveys and perform rain enclosures experiments in different forest systems in Taiwan, a region with high arthropod abundance and variable rainfall. In addition to the measures of taxonomic and functional diversity of ants, beetles and spiders from the field experiments, the project will include also lab work. Stable isotope measures of the consumers and their gut metabarcoding will be used to test for the shifts in the food-web through intraguild competition. There will also be opportunities to develop the project in a direction of the student’s own choosing, and form collaborations with international partners. Duties will include spending extensive period in Taiwan, with remaining time spent in the laboratory in the Czech Republic to analyse the collected data and pursue doctoral studies.

The successful applicants will join the Ant Research Group (http://antscience.com/) at the Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre CAS, and the Zoology Department of the University of South Bohemia, Czech Republic, under the supervision of Dr. Petr Klimes. The research facility is in Ceske Budejovice, a charming historical city in the south of the country, within easy reach of Prague and Vienna. The laboratory is a dynamic, multinational group studying ecology of ants and other insects and is embedded within the Department of Ecology, a world-class centre for tropical ecology research. The project is in collaboration with partners from National Sun Yat-Sen University and National University in Taiwan, and further European universities in the UK and Germany.

REQUIREMENTS:

Min. education level: Master’s degree
Field of education: Ecology, Entomology, or a related field (non-negotiable requirement for PhD study in Czech Republic)

  • Interest in the ecology of insects and/or invertebrates
  • Enthusiasm for working in the field in challenging conditions of tropical forests
  • Ability to work independently, and collaborate with other team members
  • Fluency in spoken and written English
  • Experience in the use of ecological statistical analyses

DESIRABLE:

  • Working experience with challenging field experiments in tropical and/or temperate forests
  • Research experience with a focal group ecology & taxonomy (i.e., ants, spiders, beetles, soil fauna)
  • Experience in the related laboratory techniques (metabarcoding, isotopes) and analyses in R
  • Scientific publishing in the above fields
  • Ability to communicate in spoken and written Chinese
  • A driver’s license

BENEFITS:

  • 5 weeks of paid holiday yearly (for 1 FTE)
  • Subsidized lunches in our own canteen
  • Standard health insurance and social security
  • Benefits from Social fund and student benefits
  • Working in a stable, prestigious research institution of international importance
  • Welcome service and further support for foreigners (HR Award)
  • English speaking, friendly & stimulating international working environment
  • Work-life balance in a middle-sized university city offering options for outdoor, sport & cultural activities
  • Free language classes (Czech for foreigners, English for Czechs)
  • Concessionary services at the contractual operator and bank
  • Access to accommodation in dormitories at the campus shared by the BC and the USB

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The Biology Centre is located in České Budějovice (2 hours south of the capital Prague), a middle-sized city with ca. 100K inhabitants, relaxed atmosphere, over 750 years of tradition and a breathtaking countryside around. Both the town and the surrounding countryside provide numerous opportunities for research and leisure activities. There is also a growing international expert community at the Biology Centre CAS (BC CAS) and the University of South Bohemia (USB). In addition, the living costs are still low by international standards. Check out our Guide for Expats (https://www.bc.cas.cz/en/employees) to read about life in the city and the Czech Republic.

The Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences holds the HR Award. Our selection process meets European standards for recruitment of researchers (https://www.bc.cas.cz/en/employees/candidates/otm-r/) and we provide our employees from abroad with welcome service (visa application, administration, relocation & settlement support). Gender equality plan (https://www.bc.cas.cz/en/about-us/gender-equality) has been accepted in 2022.

HOW TO APPLY:

The deadline for applications is December 31th 2024, with interviews shortly after (admission deadline for PhD enrolment of the selected candidates is 20th January 2025). Start date of the position is 1st April 2025 (negotiable). The successful applicants (two positions available) will receive a scholarship from the University of South Bohemia and employment at Biology Centre CAS, for the 4-year PhD course in Entomology programme, sufficient to cover living expenses in Czech Republic. Applicants from all countries are eligible.

To apply, please send a CV, contact details for three references, and cover letter stating qualifications, previous work and motivation for the position via our official website: https://jobs.bc.cas.cz/en/detail/231.

For more information about this position, please contact  Petr Klimes (klimes@entu.cas.cz)

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