PhD studentship at UEA/IoZ: Evolution and diversification of ants

Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are amongst the most ecologically

successful organisms with over 11,000 known species in 20 subfamilies

originating 115-170 million years ago. Recent work has advanced our

understanding of the evolutionary relationships of this group, giving

us a greater appreciation of the evolution of ant social structures,

life histories and threats. Despite this research, fundamental

questions about ant evolution remain.

The aim of this NERC CASE PhD studentship is to use phylogenetic

comparative methods to address fundamental macroevolutionary and

macroecological questions within this group. The student will collate

data on ant phylogenetic histories to produce the first ant

'supertree', along with data on social structures, life histories,

geographic distributions and threats. These data will be used to

reconstruct diversification patterns, to determine the factors

responsible for diversification shifts (e.g. caste differentiation),

and to identify determinants of ant spatial biodiversity with a view

to prioritizing conservation. The student will therefore receive a

broad training in phylogenetic comparative techniques, eusocial

evolution, ant ecology and conservation.

The PhD studentship is for 3 years starting in October 2010, based

jointly at the Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London (Dr

Kate Jones and Dr Seirian Sumner) and the University of East Anglia

(Prof. Andrew Bourke).

Candidates should have a first class or upper second class honours

degree in a relevant biological subject.

Closing date: 12th March 2010. Interviews will be held in mid March.

Please apply through the online form on the UEA website http://ueasciweb.uea.ac.uk/Resproject/show.aspx?ID=209

. Informal enquiries to Dr Kate Jones (kate.jones@ioz.ac.uk).