We offer a 4 year PhD Position to work in the multidisciplinary project "Cognitive evolution in fishes" within the Behavioural Ecology chair group at the Animal Science Department of Wageningen University & Research, the Netherlands.
The project uses the guppy and other fishes, to comparatively and experimentally investigate the factors driving cognitive evolution. As such, the project spans over multiple disciplines including field collections, artificial selection, assays of behaviour and detailed tests of cognitive ability, brain imaging and neural density estimations, and analyses of the genomic architecture that orchestrates changes in cognitive ability. The focus can be tailored to meet the interests of the candidate. The project will use both animals from wild populations, and from artificial selection experiments. The overall aim of the project is to increase our understanding of the evolutionary relationship between ecology, behaviour, and cognitive ability.
The work will mostly be lab-oriented but can include field trips to Trinidad and/or other field sites. The project will require hard work but at the same time provide excellent opportunities for personal initiatives and development towards a successful academic career.
The project is supervised by Dr. Alexander Kotrschal (Assistant Professor).

• MSc-degree in Biology, ideally with specialization in Animal Behaviour / Behavioural Ecology / Evolutionary Ecology or equivalent experience
• Strong experimental and analytical skills
• Passion for fishes desirable but not essential
• Good organizational and (written and spoken) communication skills in English
• Ability to collaborate with others.
• Willingness to conduct extensive laboratory work.
• Willingness to travel internationally, to attend conferences and visit other institutes.

Full time position for an initial period of 15 months with the possibility of extension to 4 years. Gross salary per month € 2325,-. in the first year rising up to € 2972,- per month in the fourth year.
In addition, we offer:

• 8% holiday allowance;
• a structural year-end bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent training opportunities and secondary employment conditions;
• excellent pension plan through ABP;
• 232 vacation hours, the option to purchase extra and good supplementary leave schemes;
• a flexible working time: the possibility to work a maximum of 2 hours per week extra and thereby to build up extra leave;
• a choice model to put together part of your employment conditions yourself, such as a bicycle plan;
• a lively workplace where you can easily make contacts and where many activities take place on the Wageningen Campus. A place where education, research and business are represented;
• participation in the training program of the Graduate School WIAS at Wageningen University;
• an excellent opportunity to develop an international scientific network;
• use the sports facilities at reduced prices on our campus .

We offer a versatile job in an international environment with varied activities in a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

Wageningen University & Research

The successful candidate will join the stimulating and international research environment of Wageningen University. Wageningen University is an internationally leading research and education institution. This project will be carried out in the Behavioural Ecology Group within the Department of Animal Sciences with the potential of running experiments at the Stockholm University, Department of Zoology, Sweden.