Website: http://www.orn.mpg.de/2622/Department_Kempenaers.
Location: Seewiesen, Bayern, Germany.
Duration: 5 months (from September 2013 to January 2014).
Job description: The assistant will help extracting data from song recordings of a variety of songbirds collected during the breeding season by Arnaud Da Silva, PhD Student at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology (website: http://www.orn.mpg.de/206596/Arnaud_Da_Silva). The project is about the impact of artificial night lighting (light pollution) on dawn singing.
Automated sound recordings were obtained each morning during a period of 3 months (March to May) in eight forest patches with experimental night lighting. The assistant will help extracting data from these recordings. Likely species of interest are: the Great Tit (Parus major), the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus), the Common Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs), the European Robin (Erithacus rubecula), the Common Blackbird (Turdus merula), the Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos), the Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes), the Dunnock (Prunella modularis) and late migrants such as the Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca), the Eurasian Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla), the Common Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) and the Woodlark (Lullula arborea).
Qualifications: Candidates should have a BSc in Biology or a related field. They must have good ornithological knowledge, especially regarding bird vocalizations. Applications from candidates that are very enthusiastic about learning bird songs will also be taken into account. If possible, candidates should have some experience with computer analysis although the use of the sound analysis software (i.e. Song Scope) is rather straightforward. The ideal candidate is highly motivated, rigorous, careful about data, and able to work well in collaboration with the PhD student. Non-EU applicants should make sure that they are eligible for an extended stay in Europe.
This is a full-time position. The assistant will obtain free accommodation in the guesthouse of the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen plus a small stipend to cover living expenses.
Applicants should send (1) a cover letter detailing their motivation and (2) a short resume or CV to Arnaud Da Silva (email: asilva@orn.mpg.de) as soon as possible. The successful candidate will be selected after an interview.