Job description
The Department of Coastal Systems (COS) at the Royal Netherlands Institute of Sea Research (NIOZ) is looking for a highly motivated PhD student to join a research team exploring the deep-sea predatory interactions between cetaceans and their prey. You will be part of the team working with Dr. Fleur Visser on the NWO-Vidi project “Tracing top predator-prey interactions into the deep sea”. The PhD will be employed and based at NIOZ (Texel Island, the Netherlands).
THE INSTITUTE
NWO-NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research is the Dutch national oceanographic institute and principally performs academically excellent multidisciplinary, fundamental, and frontier applied marine research addressing important scientific and societal questions pertinent to the functioning of the ocean and seas. NIOZ includes the National Marine research Facilities (NMF) department that operates a fleet of research vessels and the national pool of large seagoing equipment, and supports excellence in multidisciplinary marine research, education, and policy development. The work of this PhD will also be linked to the Freshwater and Marine Ecology at the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam (IBED-FAME).
THE DEPARTEMENT
The department of COS is one of the 4 research departments of NIOZ. The COS department integrates state-of-the art laboratory, field, and modelling studies in the dynamics of marine species and food webs. COS examines how physical, chemical, and biological processes interact to determine the distribution, composition, and productivity of marine species across the food web, in marine habitats from the coast to pelagic environments.
THE PROJECT
The deep sea, Earth’s largest ecosystem, plays a vital role in global biosphere functioning and holds the largest biomass and biodiversity reservoirs on our planet. It also remains severely data deficient. Key ecological processes, such as the interactions between deep-sea top predators and their prey, forming pivotal roles in system function, remain unobserved. This critically limits not only our fundamental understanding of deep-sea ecology. Ocean systems are degrading rapidly under increasing stress from human activities. Although there is wide consensus that these processes should be halted and reversed, conservation of the deep sea, and its vulnerable and protected top predators, is strongly limited by the absence of knowledge on their fundamental interactions. In the Vidi project, we investigate the interactions between toothed whale top predators, their deep-sea cephalopod and fish prey and the deep-sea environment, develop novel approaches for multi-trophic deep-sea research, and indicators for deep ocean conservation. The project applies a host of techniques to enable joint sampling of predator and prey in the deep sea. Sampling will occur across multiple pelagic deep-sea systems in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea, focused on two toothed whale top predators. The PhD will focus on the interaction between predator behaviour and prey dynamics within a larger comparative framework encompassing environmental dynamics.
YOUR ROLE
As PhD student in the Vidi project, you will apply a combination of sea-going research (research cruises on oceanographic research vessels and day-trips on small vessels) and laboratory analysis, to investigate the dynamics between toothed whale deep sea foraging behaviour and the composition and dynamics of their prey fields in the deep sea. You will apply a range of methods, including on-animal biologgers, unpiloted aerial systems, echo sounders, hydrophones, cameras and environmental DNA-analysis, in a balanced study design across multiple research sites.
You will be part of a collaborative team at NIOZ/UvA, and a larger international consortium, calling for an open and sharing team effort including the active exchange of data and results, regular team meetings, and integrative analyses. You will present the data from field and lab efforts within the departments, at project meetings, and at scientific conferences. You will prepare scientific articles and publish your results in international scientific journals. Lastly, you aim to complete the PhD thesis within the official appointment duration of four years.
You will be supervised by a team of scientists from the NIOZ and the University of Amsterdam (IBED/UvA). Training and courses during the PhD trajectory will be offered by NIOZ, and via the UvA by the Graduate School for Production Ecology & Resource Conservation (PE&RC).
Job requirements
THE CANDIDATE
We seek a skilled, enthusiastic, experienced and ambitious candidate who has a collaborative personality, demonstrated strong capability for field work and experience in the application of various fieldwork techniques, and strong analytical skills. You have a keen interest in marine deep-sea ecology and the functioning of the deep ocean environment, and:
- A Master’s degree in marine ecology/biology, oceanography or a closely related discipline
- Experience with cetacean and/or deep-sea cephalopod or fish ecology in the field and/or in the lab, in multi-disciplinary research settings
- Ability to grasp ecological concepts and perform integrative analysis from multiple data streams
- A demonstrated ability to work on programming software such us R, Phyton or Matlab
- Strong communication and writing skills in English
- You are a team player and well organized, but also able to work independently
- Affinity with field work and working/living in a team
- Driving license B
- Previous experience with one of more of the following techniques is an advantage: biologging, echo sounders, species-habitat association modelling (or comparable)
NIOZ is a transparent institute with a healthy working climate and an inclusive culture, where people from diverse backgrounds and gender bring their talents and further develop these talents. We aim for inclusive decision-making processes and expect our leadership to show visible commitment, awareness of bias, and cultural intelligence.
CONDITIONS
- Employment of this full-time position at Royal NIOZ is by NWO-I, for a total duration of 4 years. You start with an appointment for the duration of 1 year, that, after a positive evaluation in the 9th month (Go-No go), will be extended to the full period of 4 years.
- Salary compliant with scales for PhD candidate (OIOs) CAO-WVOI (Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Research Institutes).
- An appointment at NIOZ as a PhD candidate means working and learning simultaneously conform the NIOZ PhD policy.
- 338 annualized holiday hours for a full-time 40-hour work week.
- Pension scheme via ABP, 8% holiday allowance and a year-end bonus of 8.33%.
- 2nd class public transportation travel is reimbursed 100%.
- Employment benefits plan to exchange a portion of your salary for days off or vice versa, or can be used to purchase a bicycle with tax benefits.
- We offer relocation expenses for employees coming from abroad and support with finding accommodation.
- You will be registered at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) for your PhD thesis defense.
The COS departments of NIOZ is located on the beautiful island of Texel in the World Heritage Wadden Sea. Texel offers sun, wind and beach, and a diverse but moderate level of facilities, including a thriving tourist industry, shops, sports facilities, primary schools and a high school. It is connected to the mainland by a 20-min ferry operating every hour to half-hour. The NIOZ is situated next to the ferry terminal.
MORE INFORMATION
For specific additional information about this vacancy, please contact Dr. Fleur Visser (only in case of required information, it is not needed to support your interest with an additional email). For additional information about the procedure, please send an e-mail to working@nioz.nl.
Closing date for applications: February 20, 2025. Online pre-interviews are foreseen for first week of March 2025. Selected candidates will be invited for a preferably in-person interview at NIOZ on Texel 3rd week of March 2025. We aim to start the position by 1st May 2025 or shortly after.
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