2-year Postdoctoral Fellow position in Animal Physiology and Behavioural
Ecology with Dr Vincent A Viblanc and Dr F Stephen Dobson at the University of
Strasbourg, Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, France.
Social
networking in the Columbian ground squirrel: a bio-logging approach linking
animal behavior to individual health and ageing
Ageing
is likely influenced by social biology in group-living organisms. However, the
mechanisms of interaction between social stressors and stress-related health
issues are poorly studied, and the impact of social stress on organismal
fitness is virtually unknown. Our research will integrate the links among social
stressors, physiological stress indicators, and individual fitness in a colony
of ground squirrels observed since 1992. Columbian ground squirrels (Urocitellus columbianus) are semi-social
sciurid rodents that inhabit sub-alpine meadows of the Rocky Mountains of
Canada and the northern US. They have a matrilineal social system where related
individuals overlap both spatially (kin clusters) and over generations. Our
current research indicates that individual fitness benefits are acquired by
co-breeding with neighbours that are close kin. However the consequences of
social heterogeneity on individual physiology and health are unknown.
In this project we will explore the effects that the social
environment has on adult phenotype, using a bio-logging approach to measure
individual social contacts both above and below ground. We will use an
innovative approach, via large scale deployment of >80 novel contact collars coupled with
3D-accelerometers and magnetometers to establish continuous networks of social
interactions throughout the breeding season, and connect individual social
attributes to their underlying physiology (glucocorticoid stress hormones,
oxidative stress markers, immunity markers and telomere dynamics). More
information on the MamTag project
can be found here.
Research will be based at the Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert
Curien (Strasbourg, France, website), and fieldwork will be carried out in the
Sheep River Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada, website). The applicant should
have a keen interest in working with free-living mammals in outdoor conditions.
The
post-doctoral fellow will be responsible for implementing the first stage of
the MamTag project. This
will include (1) standardization and
pre-analysing accelerometer, magnetometer and contact data collected in 2018
(Dec 2018-Mar 2019), (2) deploying
loggers and collecting data (including physiological samples) in the field
(Apr-Jul 2019), (3) analysing logger
signals and developing programming routines to establish social contact
networks and animal behaviour (Aug-Mar 2020). The post-doctoral fellow will
also assist with the supervision of a PhD student associated with the project, whose
research will focus on the social determinants of fitness. The second year of
the project will be used to analyse physiological samples at the IPHC and the
Centre for the Neurobiology of Stress, University of Toronto, and publish the
results.
For
this post-doctoral project we are seeking someone who works well in a team
environment; who is mobile, creative, highly motivated; and who has a keen interest
in integrating animal physiology, behavioural and evolutionary ecology. Our
ideal candidate will have a proven record of working on complex signal analyses
(accelerometer, compass and environmental data) and developing specific
toolboxes for signal analyses (strong expertise in signal processing with
Matlab/R/Python). Previous experience working in the field (long hours outdoors,
animal handling) and in the lab (ELISA, RIA) is preferred but not essential;
the willingness to learn such techniques is, however, required. The candidate
should have excellent written and oral communication skills in English and an
excellent publication record.
The
successful applicant will be mainly based in the Department of Ecology, Physiology &
Ethology (DEPE) at the University of Strasbourg, France, under the joint
supervision of Dr Vincent A Viblanc and Dr F Stephen Dobson. The DEPE is a
lively Department where the post-doctoral fellow will benefit from interaction
with a thriving community of postgraduate students, postdocs and researchers in
animal physiology, marine biology and behavioral ecology. Furthermore, the applicant
will integrate with an international team, and will thus benefit
from the interaction and support of research partners, including Rudy Boonstra
(University of Toronto), Dominique Filippi (Sextant Technology, New Zealand), and
François Criscuolo (IPHC CNRS). The applicant will participate in University of Strasbourg
Institute for Advanced Studies (website) actions
such as seminars and related activities.
Strasbourg is one of
Europe’s most attractive cities, being 1h45 by train from Paris, 1h by plane
from Amsterdam and Scandinavia, and at the border with Germany. It has a rich historical
and architectural heritage, with Strasbourg's historical city
centre being listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Its diversity,
pedestrian city centre and 500 km of cycling paths make it a very pleasant city
to explore. Vibrant and affordable, Strasbourg is a true student city providing
a great learning and living environment (Check out the New York Time's video: 36 Hours
in Strasbourg).
Applications
must include 1) a cover letter outlining why you want to work on this project,
2) a detailed curriculum vitae including complete list of publications, 3) the
contact details of two academic referees, 4) a 1‐page summary of your PhD research
and relevant experience in the proposed topic, and 5) two of your key
publications or submitted manuscripts. Please send the above as a single pdf
file both to vincent.viblanc @iphc.cnrs.fr and fsdobson@msn.com.
Review
of applications will start on September 1st 2018 until a suitable candidate is
identified. The starting date is December 1st 2018. The postdoc project is
fully funded for 2 years by the University of Strasbourg Institute for Advanced
Studies. Annual net salary around 27,700 €.
For
more information, feel free to contact Vincent Viblanc (vincent.viblanc@iphc.cnrs.fr) or F Stephen Dobson (fsdobson@msn.com).
Funding
Suggested reading
·
Viblanc VA*, Schull Q*, Roth JD, Rabdeau J, Saraux C,
Uhlrich P, Criscuolo F, Dobson FS. 2018. Maternal
oxidative stress and reproduction: testing the constraint, cost and shielding
hypotheses in a wild mammal. Functional Ecology, 32: 722-735.
·
Viblanc VA*, Pasquaretta C*, Sueur C, Boonstra R & Dobson FS. 2016. Aggression in ground squirrels:
relationships with age, kinship, energy allocation and fitness. Behavioral Ecology, 27: 1716-1725.
·
Rubach K, Wu M,
Abebe A, Dobson FS, Murie JO & Viblanc VA. 2016. Testing the reproductive and somatic
trade-off in female Columbian ground squirrels. Ecology & Evolution, 21: 7586-7595.
·
Viblanc VA, Saraux C, Murie JO & Dobson FS. 2016. Kin effects on energy allocation in
group-living ground squirrels. Journal of Animal Ecology, 85: 1361-1369.
·
Dobson FS, Viblanc VA, Coline
CM & Murie JO. 2012. Kin selection
in Columbian ground squirrels: direct and indirect individual fitness. Molecular Ecology 21: 524-531
·
Viblanc VA, Arnaud C, Dobson FS & Murie
JO. 2010. Kin selection in Columbian ground squirrels (Urocitellus columbianus): littermate kin provide
individual fitness benefits. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological
Sciences 277:
989-994