Project title: “Metapopulation genetics and conservation of the endangered Mauritius pink pigeon”
Supervisors: Dr. Jim Groombridge (DICE), Dr. Richard Young (Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust), Prof. Carl Jones (Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)
This project will be based at the University of Kent and will be funded by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust (Durrell), with support from the Mauritius Wildlife Foundation and a consortium of international zoo collections. Funding is available to cover Home/EU tuition fees plus all research costs for 1-year (no stipend available).
The Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology at the University of Kent, in collaboration with the Durrell, is offering an exciting MSc by Research opportunity for a motivated graduate. This research project aims to study the population genetics of the free-living and global captive populations of the endangered Mauritius pink pigeon (Columba mayeri) using a suite of recently-developed molecular genetic markers. The Mauritius pink pigeon population has been recovered from just a handful of individuals to a free-living population of ~450 birds on Mauritius, and captive populations now exist in zoo collections worldwide as part of a global metapopulation. The project will focus on characterising patterns of neutral and non-neutral genetic diversity amongst individuals derived from a substantial archive of specimens across both the wild and captive populations, quantifying extent of population structure and inbreeding, with the aim of providing guidance for the long-term genetic management of the species. This project will be based at the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology’s conservation genetics laboratory, led by Dr. Jim Groombridge, with travel to zoos in the UK and Jersey to sample birds.
Duration: 1 year
Application deadline: Monday 26th March 2012
Start Date: As soon as a suitable candidate is found
Academic requirements: Applicants should have a First or Second Class UK honours degree, or equivalent, in a relevant discipline such as evolutionary genetics, conservation and/or wildlife conservation. Knowledge/experience of molecular laboratory techniques would be advantageous.
Funding: Available funding will cover the tuition fees (at the UK/EU rate only) and cover all laboratory and fieldwork costs for this 1-year research project. Assistance will be provided to the student to apply for funding to cover the stipend.
How to apply: Please send a CV (maximum 2-pages), a covering letter (maximum one page) and contact details for two references, by email to Dr. Jim Groombridge (J.Groombridge@kent.ac.uk) on or before the closing date. Interviews will be held at DICE in early/mid April 2012, with a view to the successful applicant starting over the summer of 2012.
Keywords: Population genetics, wildlife, conservation, ecology, disease, molecular genetics.